From The Inside
by IzumiTheMoogle
Summary: It was common knowledge that Zoro would do anything to protect his Nakama. Unfortunately, sometimes the smallest of happenings turn out to be the biggest. And the crew takes this for granted. -Zoro/StrawHat Nakamaship- CH. 12 UP! BACK FROM THE DEAD!
1. Just A Little Prick

This was getting to be quite old…

Zoro sliced through the opponents around him with little difficulty, finding that the group of Marines the crew had just run into moments earlier wasn't really a very advanced one… Zoro scoffed as he took down another one. This always happened.

"_We land on a new island, and there's always someone waiting to ambush us_," The swordsman thought wearily. Not that he minded people ambushing them or anything. Honestly, he loved to fight; it gave him an adrenaline rush that he could find in nothing else. But it didn't get to be much fun when all that came after you were weaklings.

Pausing momentarily when he had a break in opponents, the First Mate of the StrawHat Pirates glanced over towards the deck of the Going Merry. The scene over there didn't surprise him: Usopp frantically shooting anyone that would come within three hundred feet with his Tabasco Boshi, Chopper flailing around in fright and then occasionally changing into Heavy Point angrily when one of the Marines curiously asked if he was a Tanuki, Robin calmly snapping the necks of anyone who she considered a threat, and Nami yelling about how 'they could never go ANYWHERE anymore' while smacking enemies over the heads with the Clima Tact.

He didn't really bother to spend as much time looking around the Marine ship he, Luffy, and that ero-cook were on. As far as their strength went, this group of enemies was nothing to worry about. He watched the cook make the enemies around him fall in a second and Luffy- all while smiling merrily –punching out everyone he came in contact with and slightly scoffed at the idea of them not being able to handle themselves.

"_This shouldn't take too much longer,_" Zoro thought as he finished his glancing and struck down another Marine, "_They should be-_" His eyes suddenly shifted up to the right where one of the Marines in the Crow's Nest had a gun pointed straight down at their idiot of a Captain.

Instinctively, Zoro gripped Yubashiri and Kitetsu tighter, making to move forward to guard him. Then he remembered that no bullets worked on Luffy and hesitated. He looked up again just to make sure.

Something poking out of the end of the gun caught the swordsman's eye as he looked up again, and it shortly glinted in the mid-morning sun, "_A needle…?_" He thought anxiously, taking Wadou out of his mouth and sliding it back into its sheath, his lips curved down in an obvious frown. This was definitely new… But wait… Bullets couldn't hurt Luffy, but sharp objects definitely could. The needle certainly counted as a sharp object, didn't it?

Even if the thing only pricked the rubber man- as Zoro was sure it would –this was the Marines they were talking about. They wouldn't be dumb enough to shoot something at Luffy that they knew wouldn't do anything… Suddenly the needle looked much more menacing. The swordsman opened his mouth to shout out to his Captain, but all of the noise that he and the cook's opponents were making would only make it harder. How troublesome.

"_Damn it._"

With no other option to think of, Zoro dashed into the mess of people that Luffy was fighting, slicing through the necessary ones before he got to the boy. His hand sharply made contact with Luffy's shoulder right as the gun above was shot. He grunted as the silver object pierced his collarbone.

……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

Sanji spun around on his hands, swinging his feet around and sweeping any Marines in a ten foot radius right off their feet to the hard wood deck. This was almost becoming routine by now. The cook took the cigarette out of his mouth momentarily to exhale as he took into account the members of his crew.

Luffy was the first he saw, (of course; the guy was so damn loud) and he was just fine. Sanji wasn't surprised. These guys were pushovers. He took a third of a second to glance in the Marimo's direction next, seeing what he expected: countless Marines littered all over the ground around him. He noticed though, that Zoro seemed to be concentrating on something... Were they receiving an aerial attack too or something? Why was the bastard staring up like that?

Sanji's thoughts considering the swordsman were abruptly cut off when he heard Nami gasp out in surprise. His head whipped around just as she jumped back, inches from a sword that one of the Marines had so carelessly and ruthlessly thrown down in her direction. He bit down on his cigarette, his eyebrow lowering dangerously.

"How _dare_ he try and hurt Nami-san!" The cook scowled, immediately moving for the railing of the Marine's ship so that he could jump to the Going Merry and kick those guys' shitty asses.

He only had one foot on the railing when he felt the deck below him vibrate with the hurried movement of feet scurrying to his left. Shortly, the cook turned his head, semi-surprised to see Zoro dashing towards the group of Marines Luffy was engaging, slicing through some of them.

Because of the crowd around them, Sanji couldn't see what Zoro was doing. Shrugging it off and cursing at the swordsman for no particular reason, he began to hoist himself over the railing when- at the corner of his eye –he saw Luffy stagger out of the group with a surprised expression on his face, having to grip onto the railing to keep from falling to his face.

That's also the moment when Sanji heard the gunshot.

His head whipped up to the Crow's Nest where a Marine was now pulling the smoking barrel of his gun back, and then frantically looked back down at the group of Marines, and then at Luffy, who was outside of them. _Luffy_ was outside. Where was that swordsman??

"_Shit,_" Sanji's eyebrow's lowered more as some breath caught in his throat. Without thinking, he sprinted over to the group of Marines, kicking a side of them down and causing the other side to flinch in fright. What the hell was that idiot thinking?! Luffy wasn't affected by bullets! Why the hell did he shove him out of the way?!

Just when he opened up his mouth to yell at the swordsman, who he now feared had a hole through him, he saw Zoro grunt as he pulled something silver out of his collar, now coated thinly with red. It took Sanji a minute to process what had happened as he watched the, what looked like a, syringe to fall to the deck. He let some breath out of his mouth through gritted teeth, mumbling some choice words about marimos, heart attacks, and idiots before he jumped off to the Merry. There was no way he'd forgotten about Nami-san!

Sanji couldn't be sure, but he thought he saw a glint of color contrasting the red in the syringe as he passed by, and it gave him an anxious feeling. He shrugged it off again. This was the Marimo. He'd be fine.

……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

Luffy was, quite frankly, surprised when he felt himself being pushed to the side by a hand that could only be Zoro's. Nobody else in the crew quite had that kind of force behind a shove that would make Luffy have to grab the railing to keep from falling.

The gunshot rang loudly in his ears as he was shoved, as well as a grunt of pain from his First Mate. As soon as he got his footing, Luffy turned around quickly, immediately consumed with concern for Zoro.

Zoro pulled something out of his chest with an annoyed-sounding mutter and threw it to the ground forcefully. Luffy glanced at it quickly, vaguely recognizing it as something that Chopper used from time to time. He trotted over to his swordsman, punching out the remaining enemies that Sanji had so mercifully left standing. Looks like he wasn't the only one who thought Zoro now had a bullet through him.

"Zoro? You okay?" He asked, both with innocence and seriousness.

"Yeah," He grunted, flicking off the remaining drops of blood from his body nonchalantly, "I'm good," He looked down at the syringe curiously and then dismissed any more thoughts he had about it. So far so good.

"What _was_ that??" Luffy questioned, rubbing his straw hat-covered head in confusion and looking down where Zoro had been looking.

"Hell if I know," Zoro sighed, "Now come on. I don't think there are any more on this ship. We should go see if the others are done over there."

"'Kay!"

Needless to say, after Sanji had gone over to the Going Merry practically doused in flames of rage towards the ones who were attacking Robin and Nami, there weren't many Marines left to speak of there. Moments after Luffy and Zoro had joined their Nakama again, the Marine ship made a hasty retreat.

"Thank God," Nami groaned, sitting down on one of the Merry's steps, "I thought they were never gonna go away…"

"Ever since Alabasta, there have been more and more Marines on our tails," Usopp noted with an exhausted sigh, leaning on the Merry's railing, "Don't they ever quit??"

"Shitty bastards," Sanji grumbled, jutting out his lower lip a little, "Going after ladies like that…"

Chopper began frantically running around the deck, checking everyone from head to toe to make sure they were unharmed. Fortunately for him, these Marines weren't all that strong, so any injuries suffered by anyone on the crew would be minor. Still, when he got to Zoro, the reindeer got an extremely focused look on his face, like he was expecting something gross to be latched on to the man's chest.

Zoro immediately noticed the look he was getting, raising an eyebrow at Chopper, who was now eye level with him since he had sat down, "… What?" He didn't like it.

Chopper began checking over him adamantly; trying not to be fooled by his Nakama's unharmed appearance. There was _always _an injury on Zoro. The man let out some breath in irritation:

"Chopper, I'm fine."

The doctor looked at him disbelievingly. Zoro continued, "These guys were a lot weaker than the normal enemies we fight. I'm not going to bleed out from a fight like this."

That last phrase made Chopper cringe a bit, but he nodded in understanding. Suddenly a little red spot on Zoro's collarbone made his expression harden again. He quickly leaned in to get a closer look, which made Zoro lean back a little in surprise. The rest of the crew quickly turned their attention to the two of them after hearing Zoro's confused reaction:

"W-What the hell?"

Chopper looked at it for a second before recognizing it as a mark from a needle. It almost looked like some of his surgical needles actually, "Zoro, how did you get this mark on your collarbone?"

He was caught off-guard, but answered all the same, "Some damn Marine shot this needle thing and it hit me."

Sanji's eyebrow lowered a little at the man's failure to mention that he was protecting Luffy. He probably didn't want anyone to dwell on that. But the way Chopper seemed so focused made him a little nervous…

"I thought it was a needle…" The doctor muttered, climbing off his friend.

"Is something wrong, Chopper?" Luffy asked from the other side of the ship.

"… I don't think so…" He replied unsurely, "He was definitely hit by a needle, but I don't think it left any permanent damage, internally or externally, from what I can tell."

"Then Zoro's okay, isn't he?" Luffy blinked, confused by Chopper's uneasiness.

"I'm fine," Zoro answered before the reindeer could say anything, standing up, "I'm sure if there was anything wrong, I could feel it."

There was a short pause before Nami spoke up: "This is all your guys' fault anyway…" She mumbled.

"How the hell do you figure??" Zoro grimaced back at her.

"If you and Luffy didn't have those bounties, we might be able to come and go into towns in somewhat peace," The girl continued.

Zoro let out some breath in an uninterested hiss, "It's not like we're inviting these Marines to attack us every time we dock."

"Yeah," Luffy agreed happily, sporting a big toothy grin, "Besides, we wouldn't be pirates if we didn't get attacked by the Marines _sometimes_. And it's good to have a little excitement, isn't it?"

"There's ALWAYS 'excitement' on this ship," The crew all muttered, shaking their heads at Luffy's ever-carefree attitude. Robin giggled.

"Well, pirate ships are meant to be lively, aren't they?" She asked with a smile.

"Yeah! See? Robin gets it!"

Usopp sighed, "We might as well give up. He's a lost cause," Everyone nodded.

The crew's attention was quickly shifted to other matters after Chopper's examinations were all taken care of. Zoro was usually the one who got the full grunt of the attacks in fights with _anyone_ they came across, so if he was alright, then they would all be alright too. At least, that was Luffy's philosophy.

Besides, it was just a prick on the neck.

**Author's Note: **

**Hey everyone! Here I am with another project that I probably shouldn't be starting, considering I REALLY need to update "Cursed" and "Lyrics of Life"… But I just had this idea for a Zoro/Luffy/Sanji nakamaship type thing, and I had to go through with it. (I love writing this stuff!) **

**It'll be my first time attempting nakamaship with all three of them (usually it's just Luffy and Zoro or Sanji and Zoro), but I'm pretty sure it shouldn't turn out TOO hideous. And it's not going to be very l0ng, I think, because- like I said –there are other things that desperately need my attention… Sadly… **

**But yeah! I hope you all like the idea so far, and that you can all try and guess what's going to happen in later chapters! :] Thankies! **

**(Any Sanji/Zoro nakamaship in this story, I have to dedicate to dandy wonderous, because she's the first person I think about when I think about Zoro/Sanji nakamaship. XP) **


	2. Despair

"You guys just stay and guard the ship, okay?" Nami called out from the dock. She carried a large sack over her shoulder that everyone knew was for the immense amount of clothing she was sure to bring back on the Merry.

"Of course, Nami-swan!!" Sanji cooed, blowing kisses affectionately at her, "Anything for you!!"

Luffy's head and arms were leaning off the ship's railing. He was obviously pouting, "I wanna go on the island…" He gave Nami a look that was a mix of pleading and anger, "Why can't I come, Nami??"

She gave him a scrutinizing look, "This is a pretty big town. If you OR Zoro came, and somebody recognized you, it would mean trouble for all of us!"

"They're just jealous that we have bounties," Zoro said, leaning next to Luffy in his trademark position with his hands behind his head. A sure sign that he was going to take a nap soon.

"Yeah! Just jealous!" Luffy immediately agreed, really only wanting to have something to yell at them for. His bottom lip jutted out unhappily.

Nami's facial expression immediately changed from scrutinizing to pissed, "Why would I be jealous of _that_??"

Sanji stomped over to Zoro, "Why in the hell would you think Nami-san could EVER be jealous of _you_!?" Their faces were inches apart.

"Why do youcare what she thinks, Curly-Brow!?" Zoro spat back, opening his eyes and returning the cook's evil stare, "Oh, that's right. I forgot. You're a hopeless ero idiot!"

"Excuse me!?" Sanji bit down hard on his cigarette, "You're calling ME an idiot?! You're the one who would lose his way around his own head if it wasn't already so empty!!"

"Not my problem that you guys always get lost!!" Zoro yelled, standing up and readying his left hand to grab Wadou; the sword he always reached for when he was about to kick the cook's ass.

"Yeah right!" Sanji scoffed, "If that empty Marimo head of yours wasn't attached, you'd lose _it_ too!!"

"What?! Why you--!"

In two seconds, Zoro and Sanji started trading blows, getting into yet another fight. Nami sighed, "Why do I even try to talk to them?"

Robin smiled, looking up at Luffy, "Do you think you can handle things, Captain-san?" She was- of course –referring to the way that Sanji and Zoro seemed to be about ready to bite each other's heads off.

Luffy didn't respond, instead taking the liberty of half glaring, half pouting at his Nakama down at the dock. Usopp finally crumbled. There was no way they could leave if he was like that, "If you stay here, I'll… Buy you a really tasty snack from the town!"

"Sanji can make me snacks any time," He continued to pout.

"…A meat snack."

The Captain's gloomy disposition suddenly turned into an exuberant one. He leaned over the railing of the Merry with a gleam in his eye and a drop of drool on his lower lip, "Really?! You will?! Meat?!"

"Sure!" Usopp smiled back up at him.

With a victory cry, Luffy jumped up into the air, landing on the railing in a crouched position: "Okay! I'll stay here!" Everyone on the dock sighed in relief, "Just make sure to bring me back the meat snack, Usopp!!"

"Of course!" Usopp gave a thumbs up as the group pivoted around to walk into town.

"We'll be back soon!" Chopper called out, "We all have things to look at, but we shouldn't be too long!"

"We can't take too long," Nami said, "I managed to get some information out of one of the Marines that Sanji-kun took care of earlier; the Log Pose only takes three hours to set here, so we can't take our time!"

"Usopp!" Sanji said, who had finished fighting with Zoro momentarily, "Make sure to get everything on that list, alright? And don't make any mistakes!"

"Gotcha!" Usopp called out, shortly waving around the list full of ingredients and the like that the cook gave him earlier. Sanji would have gone, but Nami put him in charge of making sure the two idiots didn't run off into town, or do anything else stupid. He would go through with the orders even if they involved tow of the most annoying idiots in the world; after all, Nami-san was relying on him!!

Zoro had gone back down to his sleeping position, though his expression was far from serene. He was still fuming from the fight with the cook. That bastard always seemed to get under his skin just enough to make him crazy. For that reason only he wanted to go into town with the others. Then again, Sanji by himself probably couldn't restrain Luffy if he got curious…

But then again, Usopp promised Luffy meat if he stayed. The rubber man would probably stay rooted to his spot on the railing until they all came back. It only confused Zoro a little why Luffy would accept a bribe like that when the cook could easily make him something with meat. But his Captain was predictable, unfortunately…

"Oi Luffy," Sanji said, sliding off his jacket and hanging it over his arm, "I'm going to get started on lunch for when Nami-san, Robin-chan, and the others get back. Got any preferences?" Zoro should've known he was about to start cooking. Sanji always took his coat off for that.

"Meat!!" Luffy responded immediately, throwing his arms up in the air and jumping back down to the deck. Sanji rolled his eyes with a small smile:

"Why did I even ask?"

"A dumb question, truthfully," Zoro said with his eyes closed, smirking. Sanji chuckled shortly before starting to walk up the Merry's stairs to the kitchen to begin lunch, rolling up his sleeves. Luffy was easy.

Luffy immediately bounded over next to Zoro, suddenly excited. His First Mate glanced at him shortly with a smirk, "You're sure in a good mood all of a sudden."

"Well yeah!" Luffy smiled, "Usopp's bringing me meat from town, and Sanji's making meat for lunch! It's like a two-for-one deal!" Zoro chuckled good-humoredly. He would never be able to figure this guy out.

A gust of wind passed through the ship in a sharp burst, taking Luffy's most prized possession sailing along with it. The boy immediately straightened up, beginning to go into a short flailing fit.

"Hat!!" He called out desperately after the item, which was now floating over the railing of the ship, leaving the ship's vicinity. Its owner dashed over to it, hopping onto the railing and stretching his arm out immediately, catching the hat before it flew too far away. Another couple strong gusts of wind blew past the Merry, actually rocking it from side to side. Luffy let out a surprised yelp as his sandals seemed to lose traction on the railing and he fell over the edge.

"Luffy!!" Zoro cried out urgently, running up to the railing and diving off without thinking after his Captain.

Sanji dashed out to the deck after he heard Zoro yell, having to grip onto the door tightly to keep his feet as the gale blew by. He looked up right as the swordsman dived in after Luffy. Cursing to himself, Sanji jumped off the upper deck and ran over to the railing. His grip on the object started to slacken as he felt the wind die down to a comfortable breeze.

Moments after, the water broke and Zoro came gasping out of the water with Luffy hanging from his shoulders; hat firmly on his head. Sanji let a relieved breath go shortly before extending his arm down as far as it would go so he could help the two of them back up onto the deck.

Luffy coughed up little spurts of water, inhaling deeply once he was sprawled out on the deck, "Whew…" He managed to sigh before coughing a little again.

"Frickin'… Idiot…" Zoro panted, taking off his shirt momentarily to wring the water out, "Always gotta cause…" He grunted a little as he stood up, "Problems."

"Sorry," Luffy mumbled as he got his breath back, screwing on his hat even tighter to reassure himself that he still had it, "Thanks Zoro."

"Why the hell do you have to be so reckless?" Sanji took out his cigarette momentarily to chastise his Captain, "If your hat blew off, you should've just asked one of us to go get it for you instead of falling off the rail, you damn bag of hammers."

Luffy looked like a boy who'd been caught stealing a cookie before bedtime, "It wasn't my fault! The stupid wind made me lose my balance!"

"Well, just try and _think_ a little next time. I know that's hard for you…" Sanji made to turn around when he saw Zoro staring at the deck of the Merry, holding onto the railing. His expression made it look like he was almost confused about something, "… Oi, Marimo."

Zoro's gaze went over to Sanji for a moment, seeing the cook raise his eyebrow a little, asking the same silent question that he asked Zoro a lot after major fights. He shook his head, "Just need to catch my breath is all. You're slipping if you're worrying about me, cook."

"Keh," Sanji scoffed slightly before turning all the way around and letting his brow lower again. Something wasn't right… He was still trying to catch his breath? The cook shrugged it off for the third time that day. Knowing the idiot, he'd probably just sleep whatever was wrong off.

"Whew, I'm sure glad I caught hat before I fell off!" Luffy said cheerfully, pulling down on his straw hat happily, "Don't know what I'd do if it flew off! Thanks again, Zoro!"

"Huh?" Zoro looked almost surprised as he turned to Luffy, blinking a few times as he registered what the boy said, "Oh, right. No problem," He turned back around, his gaze becoming narrower as a bead of sweat made its way down his face. He took in deep breaths, "_Why am I still so out of breath??_" He thought desperately, "_I shouldn't be… All I did was dive into the water!_" His grip on the Merry's railing tightened as he continued to try and take in deep breaths. It almost seemed like the air around him was getting thick…

"_Why is it getting… So hard to breathe!?_" The man used the hand that wasn't latched onto the railing to clutch onto his chest, his fist tightening around the cloth of his shirt.

"Zoro?" Luffy looked over at his First Mate's back, his eyebrows lowering a little. He noticed how suddenly, the man's shoulders seemed to be shaking with every breath he took. He stood up and walked a step towards him.

"I…" Zoro started breathlessly. He could tell even without looking at his Captain's face that he was worried about him. He wanted to reassure Luffy that nothing was wrong, but that was getting hard to do as talking became a liability. He opened his mouth to speak, but found that he had no air to use.

"_Why is the air getting so thick?!_" He thought angrily as he stopped trying to talk and tried once again to get some air back into his lungs. He didn't even realize how much he had begun to shake, "_What's… What's wrong with me?!_"

"Zoro?" Luffy said again, this time with more drive behind his voice. Zoro's whole body had seemed to begin to shake, and it sounded like instead of actually breathing normally, he was breathing in spurts, "Zoro, are you alright?"

Suddenly, every noise around Zoro- including the worried voice of his Captain –seemed to get extremely quiet. Luffy said something, but it all came out in muted gibberish. The only sound to be heard was that of his heart thudding heavily in his chest, and the deep and desperate breaths that were no longer giving him any air.

His legs caved in underneath him.

"Zoro!!" Luffy called out in alarm as he watched his swordsman suddenly fall to the deck to his side, then roll to his back. His breathing was now short and cut-off gasps and his whole body had become beaded with sweat. The shaking hadn't stopped either. Luffy quickly gripped his Nakama by his shoulders, shaking him slightly:

"Zoro!! Oi, Zoro!! Talk to me! What's wrong?!"

Despite all of his yelling, Zoro couldn't hear anything clearly. The sound of Luffy's voice had certainly gotten louder, but the beating of his suffering heart and constricting lungs was still able to out-match it. Suddenly he thought he heard the cook's voice. His was loud too, but still incomprehensible.

"What's wrong?!" Sanji cried out as he threw the door of the kitchen open. Seeing the convulsing body of Zoro in Luffy's arms made the cigarette fall right out of the cook's mouth. He immediately jumped down to them, kneeling down next to Zoro opposite Luffy, "What happened?!" He demanded hysterically, looking up at Luffy with his teeth gnashed together in apprehension.

"I don't know!! Suddenly Zoro just started shaking, then he fell!!" Luffy yelled frantically.

Zoro could barely hear their shouts anymore. His eyes had snapped shut and his face screwed up into a pained expression as a new pain ripped through his chest. It felt like he had just been doused in flames. Teeth gnashed together tightly, the swordsman tried to keep from shouting out in agony. It was becoming too much. Thoughts were running wild in his head. He couldn't concentrate on anything except the pain he was in.

An tormented scream escaped from Zoro's throat.

Luffy and Sanji both took a sharp intake of breath, terror suddenly etched all over their faces. Zoro _never_ screamed like that. The color had drained out of both of their expressions as they watched him continue to gnash his teeth and moan after his blood-curdling cry.

"Get Chopper!! Hurry!!" Luffy screamed out urgently to Sanji, who immediately shot up from his spot and tore off the ship, running as fast as his legs would carry him into the town.

"Zoro, please, hang on!!" Luffy called out to his First Mate desperately, tightening his grip around the man's shoulder.

More moans came through Zoro's clenched teeth as his face continued to show that he was going through total hell. It was completely _unnerving_ for Luffy. Here his First Mate was suffering, going through agonizing pain, and he could do absolutely nothing to help him except keep calling out to him and telling him that help was on the way.

"_Please Sanji! Hurry!!" _

……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

Sanji dashed through the streets, frantically searching for the rest of Nakama. Mostly Chopper. He figured they had all separated to go do their own shopping and hoped that he could find the doctor before Zoro got any worse; if that was possible…

"_You'd better not die, you idiot!!_" Sanji yelled mentally, gritting his teeth as he booked down the streets, brushing past and almost knocking over several people; including women. He made an extra effort to quickly apologize to them, but made no attempt to help them back up.

There was no time for that.

Deciding to stop running around aimlessly and actually try and figure out where Chopper was, Sanji skidded to a halt in front of a vendor and feverishly asked him where medical supplies were sold in this town. The man was scared out of his wits at how ferocious he was, but answered all the same, pointing Sanji in the right direction.

The vendor barely got to finish telling him where to head when the cook ran off again, hurriedly thanking the man for his help. He picked up his pace when he spotted the sign for the store in the distance. His heart stopped momentarily when he saw Chopper walk out of the store in Brain Point, a bag of what had to be medical supplies slung over his shoulder.

He sighed, half in relief and half in desperation as he ran up to the reindeer, "Chopper!!"

Chopper turned around, recognizing the voice and opened his mouth to greet Sanji, when he saw the extremely urgent and angry look on his face, "S-Sanji? Is something wrong?"

"It's Zoro. You have to come back to the ship right now!" Sanji said loudly, the urgency in his voice only growing.

"Z-Zoro!?" Chopper was instantly terrified. If Sanji was this worried about him, then something must be horribly wrong, "What's wrong?!"

"I'll tell you while we're going!" The cook said, turning to run back in the direction he came from. Chopper nodded in understanding and instantly turned into Walk Point, running hurriedly after Sanji. This sounded extremely serious, and with a sinking feeling, Chopper thought back to the puncture wound on Zoro's collarbone:

"_Why didn't I realize it sooner?? _" He thought, biting down on his lower lip, "_Of course there was something in that syringe! I'm sorry Zoro; just hold on! I'm coming!_"

His determination made him speed up as he and Sanji made their way back to the Going Merry, where- hopefully –there would be two Nakama waiting for them.

**Author's Note:**

**Updates one day after the other! Woot! **

**I really didn't expect to get to this so soon, but (ashamedly) I do like writing for suffering Mugiwara pirates… Especially Zoro and Sanji. But those boys are just SUCH easy targets for torture fics. Tsk tsk. This won't totally be a torture fic, but there will be a fair share of angst, so hold on, fellow fangirls! **

**Hope you're all excited for the storyline! So far, so good, I think! **

**Enjoy! :]**


	3. An Analysis Unfinished

Luffy held on to Zoro like he was his lifeline, gripping tighter for short instants every time Zoro would moan or clench his own fists so tight that blood dribbled down to the deck. It was almost like whatever pain this was that had gotten into the StrawHats' First Mate was _breathing_, the way it constantly seemed to back off and then get really bad.

Nevertheless, Luffy continued to grit his teeth and hold his swordsman close, almost as if he could make the pain go away that way. He wished he could. He really did. He had stopped trying to talk to Zoro comfortingly though, because he was sure by now the man couldn't hear anything at all over this agonizing pain he was in.

The Captain found himself sweating and shaking almost as much as the contorted form before him, wishing, hoping, praying that whatever was wrong with Zoro would just stop. Stop and leave him alone. No one deserved to be in this kind of visible anguish.

Especially not Zoro.

Luffy cursed under his breath to nobody in particular, just trying to vent his sudden anger out someway. Anger at whatever or whoever did this to Zoro. He couldn't be just _sick_. Luffy knew that even though Chopper hadn't looked at him yet.

Zoro didn't get sick.

Besides, Luffy didn't know much about sicknesses (since he'd never been before), but he didn't know how one could be this bad. He would just have to wait until Chopper got back though, before he made any guesses. Though he refused to believe that Zoro was sick. But it did boggle his mind… If he wasn't sick, then what was wrong??

The loud tapping of feet and hooves on the docks made him turn around shortly, his eyes suddenly filled with relief and hope. They became even more so when Chopper and Sanji jumped on deck.

"Chopper!" Luffy called out to his doctor, the reindeer immediately dashing over to his side. He gasped in horror at seeing Zoro writhing in pain in their Captain's arms, his insides beginning to twist uncomfortably as he thought of the needle. Nevertheless, he put his game face on and rushed to Zoro's side, checking for his pulse among other things that he did as a basic test.

Things were already looking bad.

"Luffy, quickly, carry him up to the Medical Bay!" Chopper commanded after his check, dashing up the stairs to the room himself just a millisecond after finishing the sentence.

Luffy nodded seriously, sliding one of his arms underneath Zoro's knees and hoisting him up, breaking into a sprint up the stairs and shooting into the Medical Bay.

Sanji let out a semi-shaky breath and whipped out a cigarette, lighting it and hoping it would allay his worries. Something told him that Chopper wasn't going to come out of that Medical Bay for a long time.

It took him a second to realize that he'd begun pacing across the deck of the Merry.

Releasing some air, Sanji actually had to think about it for a moment before his legs stopped moving. He leaned on the railing of the ship not quite knowing what to do. He really thought that cooking might calm him down a little, (because he still hadn't started lunch yet) but then decided that he probably shouldn't.

When Sanji cooked meals for the crew, the best part was seeing how everyone enjoyed them. Everyday, he looked forward to seeing satisfied and happy faces among his crew members. He was a strong believer that meals were the being the best bonding times among friends.

He never served himself though. That was just a cook's way. He would always get more food for anyone and would always refill their drinks, because he knew that it meant they enjoyed it. And that was the best part of all of it. He could always eat later anyway… Zoro probably wouldn't be up and about for a while, so the biggest reason why Sanji didn't go and start lunch was that…

The thought of only making five shares was _not_ something he could get used to. It just… wouldn't be right. It would be like one of them had--

The cook sighed, dismissing his thoughts and blowing out some more smoke from his cigarette; standing up straight. For some reason he had gotten extremely antsy. Pacing started to sound like a good idea…

……………………………………………………………………………………

Luffy had Zoro in the Medical Bay in seconds, laying him down on the bed and standing back so that Chopper could check over him. The doctor quickly went to work, readying various instruments and giving Luffy orders.

The Captain loyally followed each one, retrieving whatever Chopper needed him to and listening to the reindeer as he explained what he was going to do: "We need to stop this pain of his, first and foremost," He said as Luffy handed him a small vial filled with a clear liquid, "This is virtually liquid painkiller," Chopper put it in simple terms so that Luffy would understand.

Luffy nodded seriously, "So it'll make Zoro's pain go away?"

"Not permanently…" Chopper said nervously as he poured the liquid into a syringe and injected it into the swordsman's arm, "But it works fast, and should be able to hold off any major pain until I can figure out what's going on."

There was no response from Luffy. Chopper turned around curiously, hoping that he would at least have gotten _some_ form of confirmation from the young man of what he'd just been told. His face fell when he saw his Captain staring fixedly at his First Mate; a stare racked with guilt and anger.

Chopper wondered if Luffy realized this was probably because of that needle that had hit Zoro earlier… Either way, it was no surprise that he felt guilty. Luffy's Nakama were everything to him, and seeing one in so much pain- especially Zoro –must have been extremely hard.

"Luffy…" Chopper said quietly, "The medicine will start to take effect in just a few minutes… After that I need to be alone so that I can focus on Zoro's condition."

Luffy closed his eyes momentarily, and Chopper could swear he saw him unclenching his fists. The stone-hard seriousness in his voice was enough to make the doctor's heart sink, "Yeah. I know. Do everything you can."

"Of course I will," Chopper replied, still quietly, watching as Luffy exited the Medical Bay with one last glance back in Zoro's direction. Attention was immediately turned on the reindeer's patient as Luffy left. It was now his job to find out what was wrong with Zoro, and then help him recover from it.

That's what he had to do; as a Doctor and as a friend.

…………………………………………………………………………………………..

Luffy walked out of the Medical Bay grimly, earning a glance from Sanji as he shut the door behind him. He looked like he had been pacing. The Captain knew that his cook was probably just as worried as he was.

Sanji was never one to show any kind of weakness in terms of worry, even when things seemed to be taking turns for the worst in fights. Granted, he did worry about his crew, but he didn't let so much concern pool out of him that he couldn't pull together and help their situation. And Zoro was the very last person he ever seriously worried about.

In fact, he stopped worrying too much after the whole ordeal at Arlong Park. He had only known the man for a day, and wondered how in the hell he could still fight after the wound that Mihawk gave him. And hearing afterwards from the Doctor there that the same wound would take two years to fully heal was pretty ridiculous.

There was no reason to worry about someone like THAT, was there? If anything, Sanji counted on Zoro to watch the backs of everyone on the crew, including his. He knew that the idiot would go to outrageous lengths to protect his Nakama, and maybe that was why he was so agitated about the tribulation that he was sure this was becoming…

Zoro took that needle for Luffy. If anything happened to him because of that, the guilt would plague the Captain for the rest of his life. Especially because it was Zoro. Sanji couldn't explain it, but there was a bond they shared that was unique out of the whole crew. First Mate and Captain. He supposed that just went hand in hand.

Nevertheless, the cook didn't like the grim look on Luffy's face, and wondered if Chopper had already reached any conclusions about what was happening with Zoro, or if he'd been told about the needle…

Sanji secretly hoped the damned thing had nothing to do with this, and that Zoro just chose an awkward time to get some rare sickness. That would be preferable.

"Well?" He said evenly, albeit with a hint of agitation, as Luffy came walking down the Merry's stairs.

"Chopper needs some time alone in there so that he can figure out what's wrong," The fact that Luffy's voice was as even as Sanji's was enough to warrant concern, "But he gave him this painkiller that's supposed to help for now."

"Good," Sanji half-nodded, looking down at a spot on the deck that suddenly seemed to become interesting. By the tone of his voice, it was easy to tell that Luffy's news didn't completely reassure him of their swordsman's health.

Granted, he was thankful that at least _some _of Zoro's pain was relieved, and that Chopper was examining him, but… The pessimist inside of him (probably put there by being around Usopp all the time) kept telling him that Chopper wouldn't have much of anything good to say when he walked out of that room.

And it also told him that Zoro would not be following after him.

……………………………………………………………………………………………

After about an hour that seemed to go on endlessly for the two pirates sitting on the deck of the Going Merry, the door to the Medical Bay opened, and the unmistakable sound of Chopper's hooves started and stopped.

Luffy and Sanji immediately shot up from their sitting positions, looking up to the perplexed-looking reindeer that had just joined them again. Luffy opened his mouth to speak, but Chopper started before he could say anything:

"Luffy, Sanji, could you guys come in here please?" His voice was strained, like he didn't want to ask them to enter the room that held their sick Nakama.

The two looked at each other briefly before going up into the Medical Bay, following after Chopper. Whatever this was couldn't be good news. Sanji was the last in, closing the door quietly behind him. Chopper had climbed upon a stool placed right beside Zoro's bed, turning to the side where a container of vials and the like were set on a small end table. Luffy and Sanji both took to looking at the bedridden swordsman before them.

Part of Sanji felt like he shouldn't be looking. The man looked too pale, too meager, too… Frail. Sanji's visible eye narrowed. It was odd to associate a word like that with Zoro. Much like the serving only five plates issue, he didn't like it. _At least he looks like he's actually breathing now… _

Luffy's stare was once again full of anger and guilt. For some reason, he felt responsible for what was happening to Zoro. He couldn't explain it, but it always tended to happen. He, as the Captain, always took on full responsibility for anything that happened to his crewmates. Somehow, this time, the weight of the guilt felt a little heavier… Maybe it was the fact that it was Roronoa Zoro, his First Mate, one of the strongest men he knew, who was lying unconscious on that bed, breaths coming out in shallow rasps.

"… Is something wrong, Chopper?" Sanji finally popped the question. Of course, he already knew that there was definitely something wrong with Zoro, but the Doctor knew what he meant.

"I… I don't know," Chopper sighed, turning back around to Zoro and putting a hoof to his chin. He looked both frustrated and concerned, "I tested his blood various times, and I have some conclusions and some, well, confusions…"

"So?" Sanji said, he and Luffy both now looking at the Doctor expectantly.

"It's… It's definitely a poison…" The reindeer said ruefully, making his two bystanders draw in some apprehensive breath. Chopper's tone sounded almost confused, as if he wasn't quite sure of what he was saying.

"So then… You know how to deal with poison, right?" Luffy asked hopefully.

"Y-Yeah, I do, normally…" The last word made Sanji and Luffy rather anxious, "But this is a very odd case... It's almost like it's _not_ poison."

"Not poison?" Sanji asked confusedly, his eyebrow lowering, "I thought you just said that it was."

"Yes, most everything in the contents of Zoro's blood points right to poison," The doctor continued, fidgeting a little with his hooves, "_Most_ everything. But there's a highly noticeable chemical imbalance…"

"Isn't that what poison is?" Sanji asked calmly, of course not knowing half as much about medicine as Chopper.

"Well, yes, but this is something else inside of the poison… Something different, that I can't identify at all."

He turned his head again to the collection of vials and picked up one full of blood from Zoro. He cringed as he picked it up. Sanji and Luffy both looked at him curiously. It was almost like the small bottle was hurting him.

"This is the sample the chemical imbalance was the most prominent in… Not that it should matter," Chopper mumbled, turning back to face them. He scrunched up his nose a little, "It gives off an awful smell that I've also never experienced in poison samples."

"Awful smell?" Sanji questioned, "_I can't smell anything…" _He thought, dismissing the sentiment shortly after when remembering that Chopper was a reindeer and his sense of smell was much better than a normal human's.

"Is it… Hurting you, Chopper?" Luffy asked as the doctor continued to cringe back from the vial in what looked like pain.

"It's r-really odd…" He said, "But I think it is… And it gets worse the more I hold it. Right now a pain is almost ringing up my arm, like it's numbing it," Suddenly, Chopper gave out a yelp like a puppy whose tail got stepped on, dropping the vial and shaking the hand that had been holding it fiercely.

Alarmed, Sanji dashed forward and caught the bottle before it crashed to the floor in a million pieces. He let out some breath as he came back up with the vial in hand. Luffy looked down at Chopper, who was holding his arm with a hoof:

"You okay, Chopper?" He asked with noted concern.

"Y-Yeah," The reindeer said, "Sorry… Thank you Sanji," He said ashamedly.

"No problem," The cook said, looking down at the vial and once again letting his brow lowered. Not only was there was no smell, there was absolutely no pain at all for him. Why would it hurt Chopper so much and then not do a thing to him?

"That's so weird," Luffy said, glancing at the vial with an almost disgusted look on his face, "Why would the poison--" Suddenly he looked up at Sanji and then back down at the vial, "Hey, is it not hurting you, Sanji?"

"No…" He shook his head, continuing to stare at the blood-filled object like it would provide him with some form of answer. It made no sense to him...

He thought back to when the needle was shot at Zoro. They were fighting with the Marines. A whole lot of them in fact. And since it was the Marines they were dealing with, then it shouldn't have come as a surprise that whatever form of weird poison that had been put into the syringe had been tampered with… But how?

Sanji's eyebrow rose abruptly as an impossible-sounding idea came into his head. Luffy and Chopper stared at him peculiarly, "Sanji?" Luffy said, hoping the jar the man from whatever kind of trance he was in.

Sanji hurriedly held the vial out, "Luffy, take the vial."

Luffy looked confused, "What? Why?"

"Just do it," He replied heatedly, really hoping that this idea he had wasn't correct. But there was only one way to prove if it was or not now.

The Captain nodded slowly, "O… Kay…" He reached out, grabbing the cylindrical item from Sanji, staring at it for a moment after he had grabbed it. Chopper and Sanji were looking at him warily, Chopper because he didn't know what Sanji had planned, and Sanji because he was afraid about the assumption he made.

Luffy winced, holding his arm farther out from him like it would make the sudden stinging numbness go away, "Ow!"

"Luffy?" Chopper asked urgently, standing up on his stool.

"Just hang on to it!" Sanji said almost pleadingly.

"I see what you mean Chopper," Luffy said, beginning to grit his teeth and sweat, "This really burns! It just keeps moving up my arm—Ow!!" He repeated louder, letting go of the vial and gripping his arm with his other hand tightly.

Sanji caught it for the second time, this time looking down at it with pure spite. He strolled over to the container beside Chopper and shoved the vial back in his place, throwing his fist down on the table and earning a jump from his Nakama, "Damn it!"

"S-Sanji? What is it? W-What's wrong?!" Chopper asked feverishly.

Sanji looked back at Luffy, his face still full of fearful anger. The boy was still clutching onto his arm, though now his face only held curiosity for whatever the cook was thinking. One word hissed out of the blonde's mouth made both Luffy and Chopper's faces pale:

"Seastone."

**Author's Note:**

**Hey everyone! SO sorry for not updating in a while! I really meant to do this sooner, but I was preoccupied with other things… (ashamed!) **

**In other news, this chapter was quite angsty, I thought. Which could be both a good and bad thing, I suppose… XP I hope it was good! At any rate, I just wanted to kind of explain the characters on the Going Merry right now, and their thoughts about the whole situation with Zoro. Or rather, the becoming situation. **

**And I pulled an awful cliffhanger move on you guys at the end there… (shifty eyes) But yes! It had to be done! Suspense is an author's best friend! Especially when said author is writing a (quite) angsty One Piece story! XD **

**I hope you all are still enjoying this! Thank you guys SO much for reviewing! I didn't expect to get this much feedback with just two chapters! It makes me very happy, and spurs me on to write more! **

**Thanks again! :]**


	4. Your Chances Are 7 To 10

"W-What?" Chopper stammered in a mousey voice after Sanji had spat out the last word that they would have expected to hear.

"Seastone?" Luffy said, frowning. He relinquished the grip on his arm after a few moments when the pain had died down.

"It makes sense, doesn't it?" Sanji asked with mild irritation in his voice, "Neither of you could stand to hold that vial of Zoro's blood for very long before it started to hurt you, and yet I could hold it with no problems at all."

There was a silence for a moment where Chopper and Luffy glanced at each other before the reindeer spoke up, "B-But…. Seastone doesn't _hurt_ Devil Fruit users, does it? It just weakens them…" He spoke with an ounce of uncertainty, being as he'd never been captured by Seastone before.

"… Yeah, I know, but…" Sanji also spoke with some uncertainty, his hands curling up into fists, "It's the only thing that makes sense, right now, isn't it?"

"But Zoro's not a Devil Fruit user," Luffy piped up," How come the Seastone is hurting him so much?"

"Well…" Chopper answered before Sanji could say anything. The doctor was looking at the ground with both a focused and perplexed look on his face, "If some form of liquefied Seastone really is that chemical imbalance I was talking about earlier…" He paused for a moment to collect his thoughts before looking back up, "That could be what's causing this strange pain of Zoro's."

"Are you saying the poison wouldn't hurt him if it wasn't for that imbalance?" Sanji asked unbelievingly.

Chopper shook his head, "No, a poison is a poison. It would still be slowly…" He took in a breath before saying the next phrase, because it was so hard to comprehend for a person of Zoro's caliber, "_Killing _him, but… That imbalance is, well…" He looked up to face the both of them again with quivering conviction, "It's the only thing that's keeping me from curing him…"

Sanji and Luffy both shared looks of disgust and disbelief. Somehow, that phrase was just… Impossible-sounding. _Chopper could not heal Zoro. _Sanji was able to think logically through the situation, automatically knowing that they HAD to find a sample of whatever unknown substance was in the swordsman's blood (he was highly considering the Seastone possibility) and get it to Chopper as soon as possible so that he could make an antidote. The cook mentally kicked himself for not picking up that damned syringe on the Marine ship what seemed like forever ago, even though it was only a few hours.

Luffy, though not nearly as much of a logical thinker as Sanji, knew right away that if this imbalance or whatever was the only thing that was keeping Zoro from getting well again, he had to find some way to fix it. He didn't know how… He just knew that he had to do it. It was the least he could do for his swordsman and Nakama.

Sanji finally spoke up after what seemed like an eternity, "So, we have to get a sample of this liquefied Seastone, or whatever the chemical imbalance is?"

Chopper fiddled around wit his hooves, "That's just the thing… Until we know exactly WHAT the imbalance is, how can we go about finding a sample?"

Sanji glanced back down at the swordsman, "… Well, we know it has some connection to the Marines. That needle is the reason for all this… Isn't it?" He asked dryly, his fists clenching again as he realized what Luffy would soon find out. He didn't want him to, but a little voice inside of the cook's head said that it would be a very bad idea to wait until later.

Chopper nodded slowly, letting out a long and exasperated breath, "Yes… The syringe that was shot at Zoro's collarbone is the source of the poison, I'm sure… The actual toxin is the strongest around there…"

"… What?" Luffy asked suddenly and roughly from the side, giving his crewmates looks of confusion and unrest. He glanced back down at Zoro for a moment before his eyes widened and he turned all the way around to face Chopper. His face was stone-hard, "That needle…?? From the Marine ship?" He remembered back to when he was shoved out of the way by his First Mate and how the swordsman just nonchalantly pulled the point out of his neck.

"Y-Yes," Chopper stammered, flinching back a little at his Captain's fierceness. He didn't know the news would upset him this much. Why was he reacting so badly??

"_Zoro? You okay?" _

"_Yeah. I'm good." _

"You mean, that's what's…"

"_What the hell WAS that??"_

"_Hell if I know. Now come on. I don't think there are any more on this ship. We should go see if the others are done over there."_

"'_Kay!" _

He'd been oblivious… Both of them had. Luffy's fists clenched and he bit his lip as his gaze wandered back down to his First Mate, lying prone and barely breathing on the Medical Bay's bed. Chopper looked up worriedly at Luffy, suddenly getting the feeling that there was something they weren't telling him.

"The needle was aimed for Luffy," Sanji said sourly but firmly. There was a sort of resentment in his voice, like he really didn't want to be saying this, "But Zoro…" He didn't finish his sentence, knowing that it would be hard for Luffy to hear it, and also knowing that it was all Chopper _needed t_o hear.

The reindeer's eyes widened and shimmered before he looked back at the unconscious swordsman with a mixture of concern, awe, and guilt on his face. It did sound like something he would do… "O-Oh…" He stammered, now knowing full well why Luffy was so dejected about hearing that the reason Zoro was sick was because of the needle.

There was a long and uncomfortable silence once again in the Medical Bay as this information sunk in. It was mildly surprising to hear Luffy as the first one to break the silence:

"… What do we have to do?" His question wasn't particularly directed towards anyone, as he was still staring rigidly down at Zoro.

"Well, the poison is from the Marines, isn't it?" Chopper asked quietly, "Since they're using it, it's likely that they have some form of antidote…"

"So we have to go back to that Marine ship?" Luffy responded mechanically, a soft but incredibly firm drive present in his voice.

Sanji let his brow furrow a little more at hearing his Captain's voice turn into that stone-hard one that was starting to become _too_ familiar. Chopper had the opposite reaction, stiffening up almost in fright. The cook answered:

"Well, it's obvious that we need to get an antidote. But we shouldn't just jump headfirst into this. First of all, we don't even know if there _is _real antidote for this poison, much less where they would keep it," He turned his head down to face the still stiff reindeer below him, "Chopper, say that there was no actual antidote…" The room's atmosphere grew significantly gloomier after that sentence was spoken, "Is there any other alternative? Anything else that you could use to heal Zoro?"

Chopper paused for a moment, collecting his thoughts, before answering Sanji's question: "I would need… A sample of the chemical imbalance. If your guess is right, Sanji, then that would mean I'd need a sample of that 'liquefied Seastone'."

"You could make an antidote with that?"

Chopper nodded determinedly, trusting in his own abilities. Sanji nodded in response to his silent answer, glancing up at Luffy who was still about as rigid as a statue, "Luffy, we-"

"Yeah, I know," He interrupted, turning around slowly to face two of his Nakama with an alarmingly calm expression; "It won't help Zoro if we just rush in and get capture or something… Right?" He looked to Sanji for confirmation.

Sanji nodded, almost mirroring Luffy's seriousness. This was a side of Luffy that people didn't often see. Normally, he would do the exact opposite of what Sanji suggested and barge right onto that Marine ship, smashing everything in his way until he found the antidote. But this was the rare form of anger that he exhibited only on extremely serious occasions. This anger was so intense, and so fiery, that it actually made him think calmly and logically.

Luffy was always the deadliest when he got calm.

"… We need to gather everyone together," Sanji said after a moment or two of silence, "When we're all here, then we can decide on our plan of action."

There was a collective nod from Chopper and Luffy before Luffy, followed by Sanji, walked out the door of the Medical Bay and back out onto the deck of the Merry. As he was about to step out, Sanji turned around and asked Chopper an extremely quiet question:

"… How long do you think he has?"

The reindeer froze up, not expecting something like that. He exhaled heavily, almost choking back a sob as he did so, "I-It's hard to say…" He responded just as quietly, gazing down at the unconscious figure on the bed before him, "A-Anywhere from… A week to ten days is what I think…"

Sanji's grip tightened on the door shortly before he walked calmly out onto the deck, feeling the urge to slam the door behind him, but not doing so. A week to ten days was not a long time…

But they would find a way to make sure that the limit put on their swordsman's life was completely destroyed. He knew they would. His chest tightened shortly as he briefly thought about what would happen if they _didn't _succeed. Letting out a long breath and lighting a cigarette, Sanji went down to meet up with Luffy so that they could start to search for their Nakama.

Needless to say, Luffy didn't have the best sense of direction in the world. (The crew figured he was second in line for the 'worst navigational skills' behind Zoro) So, Sanji ended up telling him to wait on the ship; that he would bring everyone back.

Luffy was only a mite upset about that, but the cook didn't have any doubts as to why. He was sure that the straw hat-clad boy wanted to stay on the ship and protect Zoro from anything else that might happen. Since he had learned about the needle, the guilt he felt was practically tripled.

Sanji set off at a jog, going into town for the second time that day to deliver some very unpleasant news to his comrades. And also for the second time, he had to guess at where everyone would be. Nami-san would definitely be buying clothes, Robin-chan would be looking at books, and Usopp would be, hopefully, buying the ingredients that Sanji had instructed him to get.

He was both surprised and relieved when he spotted all three of them walking towards him a little ways down. Nami was carrying a large bag over her shoulder, as well as Usopp. (Who had multiple bags. He didn't look too happy about carrying them) Robin strolled alongside Nami with a single book in her hand, smiling calmly as she normally did. Probably giggling at Usopp's complaining about the groceries too.

"Guys!" Sanji called out, waving once before jogging a little bit faster to meet up with them. The three looked at his sudden appearance curiously.

"Sanji-kun?" Nami questioned. It wouldn't have been quite as strange to see him if he hadn't been jogging when he saw them. Was he in a hurry to find them?

"I'm glad I found you," The fact that he had not said a word about 'how wonderful Nami-swan and Robin-chwan were' was already puzzling enough. And he looked… Serious. Not _too_ out of the ordinary for Sanji, but this was an odd sort of serious.

"Is something the matter, Cook-san?" Robin inquired, her smile slowly lessening. She immediately noticed his change in behavior.

"I'll tell you guys later. Right now we have to get back to the ship," There was a sort of urgency in his voice that told the three of the StrawHat pirates standing before him that something really urgent had happened.

Usopp and Nami shared an anxious look before the three of them nodded and started to follow Sanji as they made their way back to the Going Merry. Sanji had slowed down just a tad in his jog, taking into consideration the bags his friends were holding, but it was still a fast pace.

"D-Did something happen while we were gone? And where's Chopper?" Usopp asked as they ran.

"Chopper's back at the ship," Sanji replied, "And…" He let some smoke loose in between his teeth before answering. How did one phrase an answer to that question? "Yeah… Something _did_ happen."

Usopp's expression grew more concerned. Sanji's response was very cold, almost like he wasn't very fond of the idea of telling the sniper what was going on back on their ship. His pessimism about the situation grew significantly.

No one in the jogging group, savor Sanji, really had any idea of how severe the situation was until they reached the Merry. There, standing by the railing and looking down at them, was their Captain…

Wearing one of the most serious expressions that any of them had ever seen.

Suddenly, the gravity of the state of affairs shifted downwards as much as it could possibly go. Luffy was serious. That meant that something terrible had happened. As they climbed up to the deck of the Going Merry silently, Robin's eyes narrowed. She glanced at Luffy and popped the question that neither he nor Sanji wanted to hear:

"… Where is Swordsman-san?"

She was the most perceptive. On their jog back to the ship, Sanji said that Chopper was there, but failed to mention anything about Luffy or Zoro. When she saw Luffy standing solemn-faced by the railing, a sinking feeling grew in her stomach that something had happened to the green-haired man.

Sanji and Luffy both took in similar sharp intakes of breath. The cook took to staring back down at the deck solemnly again, and Luffy's fists clenched so tightly that a vein popped out.

Nami and Usopp let their bags fall to the deck with simultaneous thuds. At the same time, both of their heartbeats increased rapidly. Usopp thought he felt his stomach leap up into his throat, and had to swallow it back down. Nami spoke, with the same stutter that her heart had recently acquired:

"W-What… What happened… To Zoro?"

**Author's Note: **

**My goodness, it's almost been a full month since I updated!! O.o **

**I do apologize for that, but I've been really busy since school started back up again. I'll try to stay on top of these chapters, but I DO have other things I need to work on. (i.e., schoolwork, other stories, etc…) So, yeah… I'll get to updating when I can.**

**This chapter was actually longer than I had anticipated, but it was still pretty short. XP And man, the angst is really piling up now! XD I can't help it… I'm afraid angst is one of my writing specialties. **

**I hope you're all still enjoying this! Your reviews mean the world to me; they really inspire me to write more! :] Thankies! **


	5. The Man Who Stares Death In The Face

Sanji tried to let some smoke out of his mouth in a smooth, fluid, breath (like normal) when Nami popped the question that he knew was going to be asked, but failed quite miserably in doing so. The breath he let out instead was a tad on the shaky side, and only let out a very small amount of the smoke that he had inhaled.

The cook knew that he had to be the one to answer, since it was clear Luffy wasn't going to do so. The Captain seemed content with staring rigidly over the horizon, evidently thinking back on his First Mate, but not talking about him. Sanji's gaze flickered over to Nami, Usopp, and Robin.

"He's…" There was a short pause where he considered trying to candy-coat the fact that their friend was dying, but ultimately, the chef decided that the full truth would be the best thing. They all had a right to know how serious this was, after all, "He's been poisoned."

The color drained out of Nami and Usopp's faces as they looked at each other fearfully, taking in short intakes of breaths that could have been gasps had they not been so quick and sharp. Both of them pondered over responses to this. He was poisoned? _Zoro_ was _poisoned_?? Somehow that fact seemed incredibly hard to accept. But the amount of seriousness that had already been hung over the situation was enough to really make them worry.

"… Has Doctor-san found a cure?" Robin asked, quieter than normal. She seemed to be the only one on the deck with a voice.

Sanji took a quick look at Luffy before replying thickly, "No." Nami and Usopp stiffened even more, and the air itself seemed to become as statuesque as them. Sanji took the cigarette out of his mouth momentarily before continuing:

"Not yet. But there is a way to find one; or so we think."

A glimmer of hope sprang up into the eyes of the StrawHats. Nami was the first to let her eyes narrow back down again: "Before we ask about that… How did it happen??"

This was a sore subject because of the fact that Luffy was standing only a few feet away from them, currently carrying the guilt of possibly sending his First Mate to his grave. Nevertheless, Sanji wasn't going to hide anything from them. If he did, it would be harder to find a way to save Zoro. Luffy knew that too.

"This morning during the Marine attack," He started, "Zoro got hit with a needle of some sort. Chopper's figured out that it was definitely the source of the poison."

"Oh," Realization came into Usopp's eyes, "You mean that little mark that Chopper was fussing so badly over after the fight??" Sanji nodded.

Nami looked flustered, "But Zoro was just fine! Or at least, he said he felt fine! And he looked just fine too! What brought on such a sudden change?"

"Perhaps the poison was made to not fully activate until it was deep in the bloodstream," Robin suggested, her brow furrowed in obvious concern and confusion.

"Maybe," Sanji said, shrugging his shoulders slightly, "It began after Zoro dove into the water to save Luffy when he fell overboard," A look of confusion was shared amongst the crew, but they decided to save the question of how Luffy fell over for later, when things weren't so bad, "I went into the kitchen afterward, but it had been only a minute or two before I heard Luffy yelling. I came out to see Zoro on the deck, gasping for breath."

"… He couldn't breathe?" Nami said softly, almost disgusted. The way Sanji had phrased his sentence made it sound like Zoro was suddenly in a ton of pain. And though the aspect scared her, she wasn't able to picture somebody like him actually hurting.

"He started shaking," Luffy spoke for the first time since the rest of his crew had boarded the ship again, turning around to face them with the same stone-hard facial expression. But there were definitely traces of sadness in his eyes as he spoke, "I… It all happened pretty fast after that. The shaking got really bad, and soon Zoro fell down on the deck," The Captain shook his head, "I don't know… What happened."

"S-So how do we cure it?" Usopp stammered urgently, turning to Sanji.

"The poison is definitely from the Marines if it was in that needle," Sanji said, "It's probably safe to assume they have some sort of antidote for it."

"So we're going to confront the Marines?" Nami said, making it sound like more of a statement than a question. Her voice held more drive than usual, which wasn't surprising in the slightest. This was a situation that warranted that kind of attitude. Sanji nodded to her comment:

"Yeah. But we can't just rush in there. That would only get us captured."

"Do we know exactly what to look for?" Usopp asked, "It'd be pretty stupid to run right into a Marine Base and not know what we we're really out to get."

The cook nodded again, "Sort of. That's where it gets complicated," His brow furrowed, "I think we've made a pretty disturbing discovery about this poison… It may include some form of liquid Seastone."

"Liquid Seastone?!" Nami and Usopp both exclaimed in almost a sickened way.

Robin's brow furrowed again, "I've heard stories about that… It was said the Marines were trying to develop a form of liquefied Seastone for sharpshooters to use against Devil Fruit users. However, I never heard anything more than that. I didn't think it had ever been a successful plan."

"I don't know for sure," Sanji defended himself, "But that's definitely what it looks like. There was a vial of Zoro's blood that contained some of the strongest traces of poison, and both Chopper and Luffy couldn't hold it for much more than five seconds before their arms became numb from pain."

"B-But I thought that Seastone didn't actually _hurt _Devil Fruit users. I-It's only supposed to weaken them!" Usopp protested, being as the idea of a liquid Seastone that actually hurt Devil Fruit users was absolutely horrifying to him.

Sanji shook his head, "That's what Chopper thought too, but it's our best bet. It makes the most sense."

"But if the poison contained Seastone, why'd they shoot Zoro?" Nami said confusedly. Sanji opened his mouth to speak, but was unexpectedly interrupted by his Captain.

"Zoro was protecting me," Luffy said firmly, albeit in an almost gravelly voice, "That needle thing was supposed to hit me, but he shoved me out of the way."

Nami looked at him with surprise for a moment before letting out some breath in a heavy but sharp sigh and running a hand through her orange hair, "That idiot," She muttered, with both annoyance and concern, "I should've known…"

"That does make more sense though," Robin piped up, "It would be reasonable to think the Marines would shoot a form of Seastone-influenced poison at Captain-san. Not only would he be poisoned, the Seastone inside the poison would quicken the process."

"… Wait," Nami said suddenly, like she realized something, "Is the Seastone the reason Chopper hasn't been able to find a cure?"

Sanji nodded, "Yeah. He's never seen anything like this before, so he can't do anything for Zoro right now except try to keep his pain down and slow down… The inevitable."

The air stiffened again. Sanji let out another breath, trying to loosen the air around them. He paused in his statement just to work around the phrase 'Zoro's death', even though it was clearly implied. He didn't want to actually say something like that though; it would make him… Uncomfortable.

A large lump welled up in Luffy's throat, but he forced himself to swallow it back down, "That's not going to happen," He stated. His crew gazed up at him as he patted his straw hat down over his head and caused the midday sun to cast a shadow on his face, making it void of all emotion except determination. With that fierce determination, he continued:

"We're getting that antidote. Then we're getting our swordsman back."

Luffy's determination quickly became contagious as he received a series of resolute head nods from the rest of his crew members on deck before letting his hand fall back down to his side.

"So, what's the plan, Cook-san?" Robin asked, folding her arms across her chest.

Sanji took the cigarette in his mouth out momentarily again, letting some smoke billow up into the air, "We should get going as soon as we can, but the only problem is we don't exactly know where we need to go."

"We could just chase after that Marine ship, I suppose…" Usopp said thoughtfully, "Would they have the antidote?"

"I'm not sure about that," Nami interjected, "They may have had the poison, but chances are they got it from a base somewhere. If we wanted to find the antidote, we'd probably need to find the place where they manufacture the poison."

"So then going to that base sounds like our best bet," Sanji said.

Luffy turned around to look at his cook, "So we follow that ship?"

Sanji half nodded half shrugged, "I guess so. I don't know how else we'd find it…"

"We could ask around," Usopp suggested, "Maybe someone in town knows."

Nami quickly glanced at the round object resting on her wrist, "We still have about an hour until the Log Pose it set," She looked back up to her crewmates with a serious expression, "That should, in theory, give us enough time to look around and gather some information."

"If that Marine ship patrols this area often, it shouldn't be too hard to find information concerning its base," Robin added, hoping to add a light of hope to the conversation; it was something they all very much needed right now.

"That sounds like a good idea," Sanji said, nodding to the girls in the crew, and for once not going all googly-eyed and prattling on about how wonderful they were. Of course, he still _thought_ that, but this situation didn't warrant him vocalizing his thoughts.

He was still a little too preoccupied with the fact that one of their own was dying.

"Me, Nami-san, Robin-chan, and Usopp should all fan out into different parts of town and see what we can find out," The cook continued, gesturing to each of the ones he mentioned, "Luffy, I figure since all of us will be gone, you should stay here and guard the ship."

"Of course," Luffy said firmly, punching a fist into his palm for good measure.

The rest of the present crew nodded and immediately jogged off the ship into town, discussing their plan of action on the way. Luffy sat steadfastly on his Special Seat atop the Merry's figurehead, staring rigidly out at the sea in front of him.

"_Everything will be okay,_" He told himself, "_The others will find out what we need to know, and then we'll go to that base,_" A mental image of his First Mat e popped shortly into the man's head. An image of what he was always like: strong, ferocious, fearless. The Zoro that Luffy had come to love and trust like a brother, "_And we'll get Zoro back. We'll save him._"

The guilt the Captain had felt only minutes earlier had faded away slightly, pushed to the back of his mind by a new emotion: determination. Zoro had saved him from what he was sure now would have been certain death. So, it was only natural that Luffy would save him in return.

That was what a Captain did for his Nakama; especially his First Mate.

………………………………………………….

Chopper continued to work furiously in the Medical Bay, testing every sample of Zoro's blood for the third or fourth time, making sure that he missed absolutely nothing. Of course, sometimes it would be painful because of what they had reasoned to be Seastone in the swordsman's blood, but he ignored that as best as he could.

A doctor couldn't focus on his own pain when treating a patient.

He also made sure that he was constantly taking Zoro's pulse, making sure the man didn't worsen in any way. Or rather, making sure that he was going to live for all of those short seven to ten days he had diagnosed.

Chopper swallowed a lump in his throat as he thought of the time limit. Part of him wanted to yell at himself for daring to say that their swordsman's life was cut drastically short and part of him was wallowing away in a strange combination of pity and shame at knowing that his judgment was true.

Nevertheless, he continued to keep a vigilant watch over his friend, doing whatever it was he could do to help him, though the pressure and suspense of the situation was finally beginning to get to him. His lower lip trembled as the lump in his throat rose up again. Darn Usopp for making him so pessimistic…

"_What if… What if we can't find anything??_" He thought hopelessly, carefully placing down a test tube as his hooves started to shake for fear of dropping the contents onto the floor, "_What if when we get there… I-It's too late?_"

He didn't realize he'd begun to sniffle until a completely unexpected soft moan made him stop. He jumped up on his stool, almost falling over, and gazed with wide eyes at the still figure on the bed who was slowly batting his eyes open. He groaned again, louder, and seemed to get Chopper out of his trance.

"Zoro!" The Doctor cried out squeakily, immediately sitting upright.

"… Chopper?" The man managed to get out with a gravelly thick voice. It sounded more like a statement then a question.

Zoro tried to look over at the reindeer in question, shortly finding out that moving his head was not a good idea at all. He winced outwardly, and decided on just shifting his eyes over to the left. Even that seemed like a slow painstaking movement. His lids felt heavy.

Chopper had to remind himself to breathe, "Zoro…" He whispered, leaning forward and allowing worry to crease his brow, "H-How do you feel?" He knew it was a stupid question, but he wanted to know if the swordsman could actually respond. It was already amazing enough that he was already awake!

"… Like hell," Zoro moaned, his voice a mere shadow of its normal low self. Seeing the perplexed look on the Doctor's face, he added, "But better," It was sincere.

Chopper seemed to let out a little sigh of relief, and managed to crack a small smile, "T-That's great! I administered some painkillers, but I didn't know if they were actually working or not, so…" He rubbed the back of his head nervously.

"I guess they are… I'm breathing now, so they must be," Zoro meant it as a joke, but he could tell quickly by Chopper's downcast expression that it certainly wasn't received that way. He frowned, seeing the shine of unshed tears in his Nakama's face.

"… I'm sorry…" Chopper said quietly, his voice beginning to quiver, "I-I… Even though I-" He was ruefully going to inform Zoro of his condition when he was interrupted:

"… What're you sorry for?" The swordsman croaked, sliding his gaze back to the ceiling, "Not like you caused it."

Chopper said nothing, silently, fidgeting with his hooves. Even if it wasn't directly his fault, the reindeer still felt very guilty about not being able to cure his Nakama right away. It really ate away at him.

"… Poison, right?"

Chopper jumped in his seat again, completely startled. He stared at Zoro unbelievingly. The man was still staring at the ceiling, with an expression that could've been either seriousness or indifference. He tried to say something, put found that the words he wanted to say were hard to put together. How in the world-?!

"W-Wha…" He managed to stutter, blinking a few times.

"Been poisoned before…" The swordsman offered nonchalantly, coughing raggedly a time or two before continuing, "This feeling was similar to those times… But more…" He searched for the right word to use, "Extreme."

Chopper was almost speechless. What could he say to that?? It was amazing to him; here the man had almost died, was currently dying, and already knew what was going on with him! Chopper marveled at how amazing Zoro really was.

"How… How long?" He asked dryly, and noticeably quieter than before. He knew that Chopper knew what he meant.

Chopper froze. The hair on his back seemed to bristle uncomfortably, making him shudder. Zoro's impressiveness had just gone up even more. He knew he was dying!? … Well, even if he did know, Chopper didn't feel comfortable telling him. It wouldn't feel right to him, telling one of his friends (especially Zoro) that he only had little more than a week to live.

Zoro's senses may have been dulled, but he was still fully aware of the apprehension that had crept up into the room after he had asked the question. By the reaction from the Doctor, he concluded he didn't have a very long time.

"S'Alright…" He said, attempting to sigh, but having to cough midway through, "You don't have to tell me…"

After what seemed like an eternity, Chopper started to sniffle and sob, and Zoro's brow furrowed. He had to strain his ears to hear what was said after the sniffling began, "It's… It's not long, Zoro…"

Zoro closed his eyes momentarily, pity for the young thing that was probably racking his brain trying to find someway to help him, "_I know…_" He thought calmly.

Chopper began babbling on about something, but Zoro could barely make out words between the sobs, the sniffs, and the hiccups. But he knew what the reindeer was crying about, and that's what bothered him.

If there was one thing Roronoa Zoro hated, it was when people cried over him; especially his loved ones. He hated that. He was the guardian of the StrawHats. He was the one who was always protecting everyone else, and he never wanted anyone to worry about him. Becoming stronger was just one way of achieving that.

"Chopper," He croaked, getting his Nakama's attention. The young animal wiped his nose and looked into the green-haired-man's face, trying to stifle sobs and failing miserably. Zoro shifted his gaze back to him. The seriousness there in those dull eyes was enough to make Chopper gape in awe:

"Don't worry. I'll be fine. I trust Luffy and the others to make the best decisions they can…" He had to take a breath, "And I also trust you… To do whatever you think is right. I know that whatever you end up doing will work. You're a brilliant Doctor; the best. So… Don't worry. We'll all figure it out, somehow."

Chopper just stared in complete awe. His sniffling and sobbing had immediately stopped, and now he took to gaping at the person before him. This man… This man was looking death straight in the face, and he knew it. He knew what was going to happen, and he wasn't afraid in the least.

He trusted them. He trusted _him_.

Zoro cracked a half-smirk, "Tired… Gonna sleep."

And just like that, he had fallen into a peaceful slumber. Suddenly, a swell of pride burst forth in the Doctor's chest. Pride at knowing that Zoro, one of the strongest people he'd ever met his entire life, counted on him and trusted him with his life. Part of that scared him; for fear that he might fail, but… It also made him feel… Worthwhile.

Because he had grown to believe Zoro. When Zoro said that something was going to be fine, it always turned out that way. It was one quality that he shared with their Captain. And he had never been wrong before. Ever. Why start now?

"_Zoro said it will be alright…_" Chopper thought adamantly, actually starting to smile, "_So, it will be. I know it will!_"

And suddenly the world seemed to become more vibrant, a warm feeling encompassed the Medical Bay, and Chopper sighed. The weight of the world had turned from a brick to a feather in a matter of seconds.

Only because one man said it would.

**Author's Note: **

**GOOD GRAVY, I AM SO SORRY! **

**It has officially been over a month since I last posted a chapter… I am very ashamed! And very sorry! I hope you all forgive me for being so late, but I had an awful, awful case of Writer's Block! O.o (A mound of schoolwork wasn't helping much either) **

**But I am getting back into the swing of things!! Hopefully the next few updates will be much quicker than this one… Hopefully! No promises here, but rest assured, I will try! **

**And ah, I can't resist fluffy Nakamaship between Zoro and Chopper. XP I know, I know, this story is supposed to be Luffy/Zoro/Sanji Nakamaship centric, but… but… Zoro/Chopper Nakamaship is just so adorable! I love it so much! And I'm pretty sure that there is going to be a little of Zoro/Everyone in here anyway, so oh well! :P **

**Thank you all so much for being patient with me! I really hope you're all still liking this story! :] Take care everyone! **


	6. One Week To Go

**Hey y'all! **

**So, in light of the swarm of reviews I've been getting for this story, I've decided to answer all of them every time I dish out a new chapter! It'll be a lot easier this way, I think, and I'll get to reply to each of you. **

**I feel really bad sometimes when someone leaves a very kind review and I don't have the time to get to it. So! This idea was born… I hope it works out! **

**Thank you all for the many reviews I've gotten! I'm really glad this story is being liked! :D **

**Reader Reviews – Chapter 5**

**Duchess192: **_Thanks! I'm glad you like it! I'll try and get updates out faster. -.-'_

**Silverchild of the winds: **_Who can, indeed? I know that I can't; Zoro/Chopper Nakamaship is just too cute! Haha, I'm glad his response felt like something he'd actually say! I figured that since Zoro's been a feared bounty hunter for some time, several people would have tried to do him away. Of course, they all failed. :P _

**Myrrhmaid: **_Zoro IS quite b.a., isn't he? XD Me too! And you're right; usually just a nap or two will cure any ailment he has. Oh, don't you worry. There will be plenty of Marine-head-bashing later done by our favorite raven-haired Captain. XD_

**callosum: **_I know, right? :) I'm glad his awesomeness got across! Thank you!_

**ZeldaAddict42: **_I always look forward to your reviews; they're always so long and detailed. :D Oh, I know! It's totally canon!! Ahh, that's alright. I'm biased too! That's true; when one of the StrawHats is hurt, everyone is concerned. I tried to make it seem like Sanji was having a hard time trying to sugarcoat the situation, especially since he actually SAW Zoro convulsing and heard him scream. But you're right, it does take less time. XP Ah yes, poor Luffy! When he's sad, everyone's sad. He really has. Zoro has never really been afraid of death, and I'm sure it would be quite comforting to know that he thought that! Thank you very much! _

**Terracannon876: **_Ahh, I'm so sorry about not updating sooner! T.T I am ashamed… And yes, poor Zoro. We can only hope! You're welcome! I'm glad you're enjoying it. :] _

**PaperBagGhost: **_Yay!! Forgiveness! *feels loved* I'm glad it doesn't feel as long as it's been. Thank you!! _

**Things24: **_Yeah, it seemed like something that would happen. Zoro doesn't like to see Chopper upset. :P Thanks! _

**dandy-chan: **_(Hahaha, wow. Notice how you're the only one who I gave a nickname? XD) I really should've gotten to this sooner, seeing as how we talk back and forth a lot. O.o How I wish I could huggle Luffy too! Writing for a sad Luffy puts me in a glum mood… -.-' Oh, I know, right? XD I'm glad that his awesomeness came across as such! He really is. That's why his friendship with Zoro is amazingly fluffy and cute! X3 W00t! Yay for belivin'! Haha, that's quite alright. I've laughed unreasonably before too! XP Thank you, dandy-chan!_

**monika (ann.): ** _Thank you very much! I'm glad you're liking it!!_

**lochrann: **_I am back! Slightly… Though it took me almost another whole month to get this next chapter up… *sigh* -.-' I'll try and be more quick about my updates! Thank you! _

xHitsulover.: _Thank you! I'm glad! :D_

**borednerdsunited: **_Yay!! That makes me all sorts of happy; thank you! And don't you worry. I swear: THERE WILL BE NO ROMANCE IN THIS STORY. O.O Just Nakamaship. Plain and simple. Hey, I do too! No crime there! Aw, thank you! I appreciate the nice review! _

**AGENT KELL: **_Ehh, sorry, but I'm not going to incorporate any pairings into this story. Strictly Nakamaship. But yes; Zoro and Chopper are quite adorable! X3 Thanks!_

**Sora Tayuya: **_Thank you! And thanks for being so patient with me… I get frustrated at myself sometimes. XP Ahh, that's alright! It's still a review! That's good enough for me! _

**The Wandering Swordsman: **_Yay! I'm glad! I liked incorporating warm fuzziness into my stories, even if they are angsty! *nods* It does, indeed. I know; I don't like them either… Grr, Marines… Thank you! I'm sorry you've suffered from the awful Block as well… But hopefully I'm past all that! Thank you very much! You always leave such nice and detailed reviews! I really appreciate it! :D_

**Now, on to the story!! :P**

* * *

Usopp was the last to return to the Merry, hoping that the others had a little more luck than he did…

The sniper's trip to town had been quite uneventful. He had fanned off into the eastern corner, and even though essentially the whole section was smothered with people, most of them brushed past him without the least bit of interest in what he was asking.

It hadn't been totally without gain though. He did learn a trifle about the visiting periods of the Marine ship they had run into earlier. From what he gathered, it sounded like there was more than one ship patrolling the island. That really didn't surprise him much; it was a big island. There were several towns on it that were larger than Loguetown, so the fact that there were several Marines ships patrolling there made sense.

But it still worried him. The more Marine ships, the more chances the crew had of being discovered and hunted down. Being chased by a Marine ship (or several) was usually terrifying in itself for Usopp, but Zoro's current condition only seemed to make the feeling of dread worse.

He bit his lip as he climbed back up over the Merry's railing.

Luffy looked over from his spot on his Special Seat as the ship's resident liar climbed back aboard. Sanji, Nami, and Robin were all standing in a form of semi-circle around their Captain, and had been waiting for Usopp before they began to talk about their findings.

"Hey guys; sorry I'm late," He offered clumsily, entering their odd semi-circle.

"It's alright," Nami nodded, turning immediately so that she could everyone's gazes, "Now, let's talk about what we found. Sanji-kun?" She glanced at the cook, "Could you find anything?"

Sanji took the cigarette out of his mouth momentarily, letting some smoke tumble out, "I couldn't find a great deal of things, but I found out one or two that I think may be important to know," Nami nodded for him to continue , "I learned that the ship we encountered earlier comes to this same port once every four weeks or so to stock up on supplies and patrol the town. They only stay for a few days before leaving for a while."

"And then other Marine ships take turns patrolling, right?" Usopp asked, applying what he had learned as well.

Sanji nodded, "I think it's safe to assume that the ship goes back to its base or wherever when it's not patrolling here. That may lead to an advantage. If we could follow them back to their base…"

"I can see the logic in that," Robin mused, "But the Marine ship has already left, has it not?"

"We can always follow after it, can't we?" Usopp asked, folding his arms, "I mean, it only left this morning."

"There's a… Slight problem though," Nami said, her expression becoming uneasy. She glanced down at the deck unhappily, "With following that ship, I mean."

"What's the problem with it, Nami?" Luffy inquired, raising an eyebrow, "It seems like the best thing to do, doesn't it?"

"Well, yeah, but the thing is… It'll take a while to get there. Plus, we run a very high risk of being captured by the Marines if we're following them. We won't be very able to find Zoro's antidote if we're in custody."

"Wait, you mean you know where this base is?" Usopp asked.

"Uh-huh," Nami said, looking back up, "It's out to the northeast of this island. The actual base obscures the whole island it's on, but the island itself is relatively small, so--"

"… Nami-san…" Sanji's low voice stopped Nami's explanation in her tracks. The crew turned to him confusedly, surprised that Sanji had interrupted Nami of all people. But by his dark expression, whatever he said couldn't be anything good.

"Yes, Sanji-kun?" Nami asked unsurely, brows rising in confusion.

"How long… Will it take us to reach this island?" A lump had begun to form in his stomach.

Nami sighed, running a hand through her hair, "That's the really frustrating part… I can see why that Marine ship only comes here every month or so; quite frankly I'm surprised that the base could extend its reach this far…" She looked back up at Sanji with an almost grave seriousness in her face, "From this island, where we are now, it will take a week at least to get to this Marine base."

Sanji's breath hitched in his throat.

Usopp's mouth fell open, "A week?! Are you kidding me?!"

"That's a long time," Luffy noted, himself looking almost appalled, "We need to get Zoro help; a week is way too long to wait!"

_You have no idea… _Sanji's fists clenched and he bit down on his cigarette, nervous beads of sweat beginning to roll down his face. Zoro barely had that long! The limit Chopper had said was seven to ten days, and that was short enough in itself. But it would take a week to get somewhere where they couldn't even be certain that Zoro could find help?

_Shit. _

Robin glanced at Nami and Luffy, "Well, in light of this information, it seems that we should start sailing as soon as possible. Don't you think so, Captain-san? Navigator-san?"

Luffy nodded resolutely, "Of course!" He jumped down from his Special Seat, "Let's set sail right away!"

It took Nami a second to process that an order had just been issued by the Captain, "Right! Hoist the anchor! Lower the sails! We're leaving!"

A simultaneous nod from the crew, and then everyone was running in various directions, getting the Merry ready to leave port as fast as they could. Though the order was sudden, they all knew that it needed to be carried out.

Zoro definitely wasn't getting any better very fast, and although none of the crew savor Sanji and Chopper knew that he didn't have much longer, seven days was a long time for someone who'd just been severely poisoned.

Robin glanced at Sanji from time to time as the ship set sail, studying his ever-increasing vexed expression. He seemed to have gotten more anxious ever since Nami had told them how long it would take to reach the Marine Base, and that worried Robin. Zoro mustn't have had much time.

She wondered briefly if the others had stopped and thought about how much of a toll the poison had taken on their swordsman. None of them had actually seen him, (she doubted that any of them particularly wanted to) but they all seemed to understand that seven days was a long time to wait to go somewhere if you had been poisoned. Besides, Luffy and Sanji had even been quite serious about it, so things must have not been going too well.

The archaeologist lifted up a bag that no one seemed to notice she had been holding in the sudden commotion and looked over its contents shortly before turning back up to face Nami, who stood on the other side of the deck, giving everything a once-over before they were truly off.

"Navigator-san?"

"Huh? Yes Robin?"

"I'm going to go talk to Doctor-san about my findings in town. I believe they will be useful to him."

Nami seemed surprised at first, but then nodded, "Oh, alright. Go ahead," For a second, the girl wondered why Robin had bothered to tell her, but then realized that on this ship it was especially important to know where everyone was at all times.

Robin walked casually up the stairs of the Merry, shortly passed by Usopp, who had rushed up to steer the rudder in the kitchen in the right direction. Luffy and Sanji had already finished their jobs and were standing back on the deck watching the horizon line as the ship began to sail away from the town.

As Robin opened the door to the Medical Bay, Chopper stopped walking in mid-step. It looked to her like he was just going to walk outside. He looked surprised to see her, and looked up with wide innocent eyes:

"Oh, Robin," His voice was much quieter than normal; the one he always used when he was in the presence of a patient. His gaze flickered to the round window by Zoro's head before returning to the woman, "Have we set sail?"

She nodded, trying to match his voice in softness, "Yes, Doctor-san. We're heading after that Marine vessel we fought against earlier today."

"I see…" Chopper frowned, "So we're following it to its base?"

Robin nodded again, then looked up at Zoro's sleeping form, her composed face seeming to relax a little when she saw that he didn't look like he was in much pain. Suddenly she was reminded of the week they would have to spend going to this base…

"… It's a week-long journey to the Marine Base," Her gaze narrowed again.

Chopper froze in his spot, barely able to suppress a tiny gasp that passed through his mouth. He looked over at Zoro with a guilty expression, biting his lip. His eyes glistened with unshed tears. Robin looked down at him sympathetically, mentally accepting her theory of Zoro not having very long. Chopper began to speak, still facing the swordsman.

"R-Robin," His voice was thick, and he had to swallow down the lump in his throat. Doctors couldn't let their feelings get in the way of someone's condition, "H-H-He-- I…" He took in a breath, "Zoro… D-Doesn't have much longer than that…"

Sadness clouded over Robin's usually bright blue eyes. This wasn't an easy thing for him to admit, she knew, "Doctor-san…" She offered softly, wishing to change the topic just a little, "We all went out in town to see what we could find out about the Marine ship we're following, and I think I may have some things that may interest you in particular."

Curious, Chopper watched as she held open the bag in her hands, allowing him to look inside. He glanced in once then looked back up at her confusedly, "Books?"

She nodded, "Instead of asking about the vessel or base, I tried to find out anything I could about this 'liquefied Seastone' we believe is in the poison."

Chopper's brow furrowed again, but he was nevertheless interested, "They have books on it?" He rummaged through the bag, skimming over the books' titles.

"I had noticed these briefly when I went shopping earlier," The archaeologist continued as Chopper pulled the books out, stacking them neatly on the floor beside his already crammed bookshelf, "They contain histories of the Marines' scientific achievements up until only a few months ago. The shopkeeper had said that only Marines or interested civilians pick up copies of them; not many pirates look into that sort of thing."

Chopper picked up the book on the top of his stack and let his eyes run over the table of contents. His ears perked up a little after a moment, "There's a sub-heading here that reads 'Developing Seastone Ammunition'," He looked up to Robin, "Do you think that…?"

She nodded, walking over and crouching down beside the reindeer to look at what he was reading, "Yes; I noticed that too. I didn't get much of a chance to read deeply into it, since I was short on time, but it does look promising."

"Do all of them have something on this 'liquefied Seastone substance?" The Doctor asked curiously.

"Not exactly liquefied Seastone per se," Robin stood up, "But they each have some form of article on Seastone itself, and its properties. Perhaps if we study the core of the problem, we may find a plausible solution…?"

Chopper nodded resolutely, letting the book shut with a clap and setting it back on the pile, "Of course. That's a good idea. I'll start reading up on this as soon as possible."

"Would you like me to assist you, Doctor-san? I believe it would make it easier if there were two of us. That way, you don't have to try and focus on treating Swordsman-san and studying."

Chopper's expression was a mixture of surprise and relief, "Oh, alright!" He smiled sincerely at her, "Thank you, Robin. I know this will help."

She smiled back considerately, "Not a problem, Doctor-san."

* * *

Zoro's eyes fluttered open heavily, and it took him a few moments to take in his surroundings as his eyes adjusted to the dimly lit room. The first thing he did notice besides a dull pain encompassing his stiff limbs was a pair of warm rubbery arms draped over his stomach on his blanket.

The man was shocked for only a second before he allowed what he wanted to be a chuckle to escape from his mouth. It came out as a spurt of quiet noise. Someone stirred beside him, and a gentle voice caused him to shift his gaze to his left.

"It's good to see you awake, Swordsman-san," A smile made her eyes shimmer in the light from the torch by her side. She turned a page in the book she was reading.

Zoro gave her a soft grunt as a response, attempting to sit up but finding he couldn't do so very easily. He felt Robin's warm gaze on him, "Stiff," He offered quietly, in almost nothing more than a whisper.

"I can imagine," She chuckled softly, "But Doctor-san administered some more medication before he went to sleep," She gestured to the small furry sleeping form on the floor cuddled up next to Usopp, "So you shouldn't be feeling any pain, at least," She looked at him again, asking an unvoiced question.

"Guess its working," The man answered hoarsely, hoisting himself up to his elbows with much more difficulty than he should have had. Being bedridden wasn't something he could ever get used to.

Looking down at Robin's feet, Zoro saw the sleeping sniper and Doctor sprawled out under a blanket. The cook was leaning on the wall to the right of where Robin was seated in a chair, legs curled up and head resting on arms that sat on his knees. No Nami. Robin must've still been watching him give the crew a once over.

"Navigator-san is out on watch," She informed him.

"Ah," He let out some breath, which he felt he was short on. Coming up to his elbows was really that hard on him? "Then… Why are you up?"

She shrugged, "Studying. Besides, I have the next watch."

Simple enough. Zoro looked down at his sleeping crewmates again, chuckling shortly like he had before at noticing that Luffy was getting drool all over his blanket, "Jeez, what an idiot…" He said fondly.

Robin's smile grew a little, "They all tried to pry him off of you, but Captain-san was adamant about staying put. It was quite comical, actually," She had a laugh in her voice.

"Probably knew he'd fall asleep like that…" Zoro shook his head, finding it feeling heavy after he did so. The swordsman grimaced. He really couldn't make any movements at all; sudden or not.

The man suddenly plopped back down onto his pillow with a soft grunt, snapping his eyes shut and trying to make the dizziness he felt go away, "He'd better not start punching in his sleep."

Robin laughed quietly, "If he does, I will try to remove him from you."

He half-smiled, "The keyword being 'try'."

She laughed again, "Rest well, Swordsman-san."

"… Thanks…" As he drifted off to sleep, he finished the thought, "_Everyone… Thanks…"_

**Author's Note: **

**Yay for Zoro/Robin Nakamaship!! One of the most underrated and under-noticed Nakamaships out there! (In my book, that is XP) This chapter had a lot of Robin in it, mostly because she hasn't really had much action in the last five chapters. It was good practice for me because I don't write for her much. **

**And again: I am REALLY sorry about not updating sooner! I keep saying I'll try and get these updates out sooner, and I keep failing… T.T Stupid schoolwork. **

**At any rate! I hope you all like this chapter, and I hope you'll all review! Your reviews really mean the world to me! So thank you! :]**


	7. Our Destination Is

**Reader Reviews – Chapter 6**

**Sanosuke Hidane: **_First of all; cool name!! Thank you! I'm really glad you enjoyed it! Zoro/Robin friendship is very underappreciated! I do love how the crew love each other so! Thanks for reviewing! _

**Iryann: **_I know, right? And they are similar, huh?? Thank you!! I'm glad you've been liking it!_

**Blade-Rose: **_Hahaha, that's awesome. XD Thanks!_

**callosum: **_Thank you! Yeah, it really is… They're talks are sparse, but lovely! :] Thanks again! I'm really glad an author I enjoy reading from likes my story!_

**Pom Rania: **_Thank you very much for pointing that out to me! I'll be sure to fix it right away! _

**PaperBagGhost: **_Oh, I'm sorry about that! But suspense is good! XD At least for the writer; not so sure about the reader… I'm really glad you think so! I always try to keep people in the best character than I can! Thanks again! _

**dandy-chan: **_Once again, you have earned a nickname. (XD)Nah, it's fine! Don't worry about it! I'm really busy too! I'm glad you caught it! Robin is like the big sister of the crew, I think, which makes her and Zoro's Nakamaship all the more awesome! I know!! Go Merry, GO! __Thank you for your nice words, dandy-chan!!_

**Xx-Brat-xX: **_Thank you! I'm glad you thought it was cute! I hope this updates satisfies you!_

**things24: **_Well, I'm glad there's someone else out there as bad with updates as me! XP I do too! It's really sweet! Thank you very much! _

**Sora Tayuya: **_Thank you very much! :] I appreciate your compliments very much, and I hope I can live up to your standards in terms of stories… Hahaha! Good luck with your assignments! _

**The Wandering Swordsman: **_Yes, these chapters have been rather sad, but tis a sad story… Yeah; I think Chopper has a really heavy weight on his shoulders. Aw, thank you!! I tried to make it as cute and fluffy as I could. Plus it just seemed like something Luffy would do! Thanks again! I appreciate the kind review!_

**borednerdsunited: **_Oh, I know! ZoXRo; overrated. Zoro/Robin Nakamaship; underrated. At least, from my viewpoint! She is, huh? Whew, I'm glad to hear you say that! It reassures me a little! Thank you very much! I'm glad you like it!!_

**Autumnights: **_Oh, thank you very much! I'm really glad that I'm able to inspire someone! Ah, yes… Those plot bunnies… They'll be the death of fanfic writers everywhere! XD Thank you again! I'm really glad you like it! I hope you'll continue to!_

* * *

Usopp heaved a loud yawn, stretching out his arms for a moment before returning to the rudder. Chopper had nuzzled into his side so hard last night he was sure he left a bruise or something…

They had all been up since before dawn, though no one was complaining about the lack of an hour of sleep. The news of Zoro's ever-worsening condition was obviously a shock to the crew; especially the fact that it would take a week of good sailing to make it to the Marine base where they were supposed to find a cure for the man. _Hopefully find a cure for him…_

They, or rather Zoro, had no time to waste. If they took their time in trying to find some kind of cure, who knows what could happen? They didn't even know how long he had…

Maybe it was the sniper's overwhelming pessimism taking over his thoughts, but the whole idea of this Marine base sounded like a wild goose chase to him. They didn't even know if they'd find an antidote for whatever Zoro was poisoned with there. And what would happen if it really _wasn't _at the base? They'd be in bad shape. He was sure that a week of a poison so strong it had the StrawHats' swordsman convulsing on the floor wouldn't go over too well with the sick Nakama in question… What if he didn't…?

Usopp shuddered a little involuntarily.

Letting go of the rudder as he set the Merry in the direction Nami had instructed, he shook his head, trying to clear it of pessimistic thoughts that had way overstayed their welcome. It was usually hard enough for him to think positively about bad situations, and this one was pretty darned bad. But he held his head up high and swore silently that he would try and keep positive thoughts.

If not for the crew's sanity, then for his own.

"She's all set, Nami!" The sniper called out down to the deck as he walked out of the kitchen.

Nami looked up from the Log Pose, "Okay; great!" Her attention was immediately drawn back to it, brow knitted together in the beginnings of worry.

There was no doubt that they needed to hurry and find this Marine base as soon as possible. Their swordsman wasn't getting any better, and if even Chopper couldn't find a cure for it, then it must've been a very deadly poison. However, the navigator worried about the Log Pose… Hopefully this detour trip wouldn't screw it up any… But what about the island the Marine base is on? Would its magnetic field mess up the Log Pose? What would they do if that happened? What if the antidote wasn't there?? A million questions swam around in her head; none of which she had the answer for.

Robin glanced to the side, aware of the navigator's growing discomfort. She seemed to have a talent for sensing when something was upsetting people, "Something wrong, Navigator-san?" She asked calmly.

"Huh?" Nami looked up at Robin for a moment, knocked out of her trance momentarily, "Oh, no, it's nothing. Just…" Unsure eyes looked back at the Log Pose, "This trip that we're making…"

"You're afraid that it will interfere with the Log Pose?" The archaeologist guessed.

Nami looked surprised at first, but then sobered back up again. Of course she could tell; it _was_ Robin after all, "Yeah, actually…" She sighed, "I'm afraid that the island's magnetic field will screw it up… Not that I'm saying we shouldn't go; I know we have to. But I just don't know what we'd do if we got stuck there or something."

"The island that the Marine base is on?" Robin asked.

"Yeah…"

She smiled, "Then you don't have to worry at all."

"Huh?" Nami looked at her Nakama confusedly.

"The Marine base we're heading for isn't on an actual island. It was built over a course of many years."

"Built??" Nami looked like she just realized something, "No wonder the base itself is so big…" She put a hand to her chin for a moment and then looked back up, "Hey Robin, could you call everyone together?"

Robin nodded as Nami pivoted around and ran into the women's quarters.

Sanji and Luffy jumped down from the mast as they felt a pair of Robin's hands tap them on the shoulder, followed closely by Usopp who only had to walk down the Merry's stairs after he heard what Nami had asked.

"What is it, Robin-chan?" Sanji asked, lighting a cigarette that he hadn't been able to earlier with all the hustle and bustle of getting the ship moving. It was noticeably harder to do with one less person. (The anchor was a lot heavier than he thought it was, not that he would admit that out loud)

"Navigator-san wanted me to gather everyone together," Robin said.

"What for?" Luffy asked, cocking his head to the side.

"Something to do with that Marine base, right?" Usopp said, crossing his arms. He had overheard most of the conversation earlier.

Robin nodded, "That would be the most feasible reason."

Everyone turned their heads as they heard a door closing. Nami jogged up to them with a map in her hands and a serious expression on her face, "Okay, everyone's here. That's good. This is important, so I want you all to pay good attention."

"Wait; should Chopper be here too??" Usopp asked.

"One of us can brief him afterwards," Sanji said, taking his cigarette out momentarily to blow some smoke out.

"Good idea, Sanji-kun," Nami nodded, then turned her attention back to everyone else, "Now, we need to talk about this Marine base that we're going to," She crouched down to the deck of the Merry and flattened out the map in her hands. Everyone else followed suit shortly, crouching down and staring intently at the piece of paper that would hopefully lead them to a cure for their sick Nakama.

"This is a map of the island we just left as well as a few surrounding ones. We just left here," Nami pointed to a medium-sized island on the lower left corner of the paper, "and we're heading up here," Her finger trailed the map until it landed on a quite sizable piece of land to the far northeast. Instead of showing a regular island shape like the rest of the forms on the map, it had a giant tower-like structure, "Well that explains it…" She mumbled almost incoherently.

"Explains what?" Luffy asked curiously.

"Well, Robin just informed me that this Marine base thing isn't located on an actual island. It was actually built on the sea."

"What??" The crew- save for Robin –all shared the same response.

"How is that possible?" Sanji asked, his visible eye widening a little bit.

"I'm not quite sure myself…" Nami said, "All I know is that it took many years to build."

"I guess," Usopp said in awe. He somehow missed this part of Nami and Robin's earlier conversation, "How big is this thing, anyway?? I mean, it looks pretty big just on the map, so…"

"It's very large," Nami said, her brow furrowing, "Way larger than any Marine base we've ever been to before."

"Bigger than that one from after Skypiea?" Luffy asked curiously.

Nami nodded ruefully, "Yes; it is," She searched for something to compare it to, "You guys remember how big Reverse Mountain was, don't you?"

"Yeah; of course," Sanji said, "We couldn't even see the top of it from the bottom."

"Well… This 'island' is about as big as Reverse Mountain…" She mumbled nervously.

"WHAT??" Luffy and Usopp both yelled at the same time, their eyes matching in ridiculous size.

"Are you serious??" Sanji asked, mouth falling agape. He had to remember to not let his cigarette fall out, "You mean the base itself is as big as a freakin' mountain?!"

"Well, there are lots of different housing compartments and storage units there as well, so the base itself doesn't take up all the space," Nami continued, "I got this map in town yesterday, and the shopkeeper who sold it to me told me how big it was," She didn't go into actual numbers because she knew it would be useless on them, "He said that this base was one of the largest ones in the Grand Line…"

"Whoa, that's pretty intense…" Luffy noted.

"Why didn't you tell us about this yesterday?" Usopp asked out of curiosity.

"I probably should have mentioned something, but there really was no time to explain to you all thoroughly," The navigator explained, "The base…" She tapped her finger on the picture of the base, "Its name is Red Fetter."

"Whoa, whoa, whoa!" Usopp said, holding his hand out, "You mean fetter as in chain and red as in blood?!"

"That's most likely what it implies," Nami said seriously, taking her finger off of the picture of the base, "In addition to being one of the biggest Marine bases in the Grand Line, Red Fetter has one of the bloodiest histories. They've executed some of the biggest pirate names the world has ever known."

"Like who?" Luffy asked.

She shook her head, "I wasn't told many specifics, but--"

"Gold Roger's men, if I'm correct," Robin interjected calmly.

It took a moment for this information to process for the crew. Sanji found his voice first, "… Gold Roger's crew was executed there?"

"No way! Really?" Usopp asked, his knees already starting to shake.

"All of them??" Luffy asked.

"Not all of them, I believe," Robin continued, "Only about a third of the Roger Pirates got captured; I'm not sure what happened to the rest."

"So then, that third was…?" Nami began, gazing down at the map.

Robin nodded, "Most all of them were executed here," A stunned silence took over the crew for a moment, "None of them came to Roger's execution in Loguetown. They all scattered across the Grand Line. Granted, most of them were executed at Impel Down. However, the convenience and size of Red Fetter allowed the Marines to get rid of them more quickly after they were captured."

"That's unreal…" Nami muttered. This was definitely news to her, "So this place must be very well-known then."

"How come we've never heard about it if it's so important?" Luffy asked, cocking his head to the side.

Robin shrugged, "I don't suppose we've ever needed to, Captain-san."

"Huh?" He still looked confused.

"Oh yeah, that's a good point…" Nami mused. She looked up at Luffy to address his confusion, "We've obviously never been this far out in the Grand Line before. Because of that, we've had no reason to hear about this base. It's so far out that, unless somebody significant was executed, we wouldn't hear about it."

"… I guess that makes sense…" The Captain said, scratching the back of his head a little.

"Nami-san, is there anything else we need to know about the base?" Sanji asked.

"If there is, I don't know what," Nami shrugged her shoulders, "Unfortunately, with all of the hurry of yesterday I wasn't able to obtain too much info… But given its size and the number of important pirates executed there, we _have_ to go about things with extreme caution," She stood up, picking up the map and rolling it back up in her hand. Once again, the crew followed her lead.

"Uh… Nami?" Usopp asked once they were all standing again.

"Yes?"

"How exactly are we going to dock there?" His knees started shaking a little, "This place sounds really huge and really good at what it does. I doubt they'll let an obvious group of pirates dock there!"

"I've been thinking about that… I figure they'll definitely have lookouts, right?" She looked up to Robin for confirmation. If anyone was to know the answer it was her.

The archaeologist nodded slowly, "That would be most likely. Do you have a plan for getting around them, Navigator-san?"

Nami looked thoughtful, "I think so… But we still have six days at the least until we get to Red Fetter. We can't rush a plan if we want it to actually work, so I'll take this time to think about it more," She addressed all of the present crew members, "I'm going to need all of your help if I want this to work. During the course of the week, I'll talk to everyone about the plan and their role in it."

They all nodded in unison, clearly understanding the importance of making a foolproof plan. Though all were nervous to some extent (except for maybe Luffy, who just wanted to beat the Marines' faces in), everyone knew that this was something that had to be done if they wanted to save Zoro.

"_Don't worry Zoro,_" Luffy thought adamantly, "_We'll save you. I promise._"

* * *

Chopper tried to stifle a yawn and failed miserably as he turned a page in one of the books Robin had bought the day before. Its not that he was bored by the material he was reading; not at all. This was very interesting and important stuff, so he would continue reading as long as he had to. However, his body wasn't quite used to waking up so early in the morning. The sun had only been up for about forty-five minutes.

Nevertheless, he pressed on, determined to learn as much as he could about the- what he was now sure was –liquefied Seastone that was plaguing the man sleeping on the bed in front of him. There was a ton of information in these books, and Chopper wondered briefly if Robin really had gotten them from a bookstore in town… They held some very vital information, and he was sure that if they got into the wrong hands, the Marines could be in trouble.

"But then again…" He mumbled to himself as he studied a diagram of the 'Liquefied Seastone Prototype', "I don't think regular people could buy Seastone. It's the primary ingredient here for making the poison, so they probably wouldn't be in too much danger of it backfiring on them."

His thoughts were interrupted when he heard another soft groan like the day before. Also like the day before, he just about jumped up out of his seat with a squeal.

"Damn…" Zoro's hoarse voice brought Chopper out of his shivering fit, "Still stiff…"

"S-Stop doing that!" The Doctor yelled at him in a hushed tone as he scrambled back to his spot on the stool he almost fell off of.

"Doing what?" The swordsman asked in mild annoyance, slowly turning his head in Chopper's direction and finding it not as hard to do anymore.

"Surprising me like that…" The reindeer mumbled, looking down at the floor for a moment before jumping off of his stool to go and get some of his more basic medical supplies.

Zoro grunted, not seeing how he could have surprised the Doctor by just waking up. By the time the little reindeer had gathered up the tool in his medical bag and turned around, the sick swordsman had already hoisted himself up to a sitting position with only a few grunts and ragged coughs every now and then. Chopper immediately cried out fearfully.

"Zoro!!" He ran back over to his stool, jumping onto it and lightly pushing on his friend's arm, trying to get him to lie back down, "What are you doing?! You're supposed to be resting! You can't make sudden movements like that! Your body won't be able to--"

"I'm stiff as hell," The swordsman interrupted gravelly, "I need," He coughed once, "to stretch."

"No, you need to lie back down!" Chopper urged, pushing on Zoro's arm a little harder, "You won't be helping yourself if you move around this much this early on!"

"Do I really have a lot of time to move around?" Zoro looked up at Chopper seriously, tired bags under his eyes despite his loads of sleep.

Chopper froze in his place, looking down at the floor again in shame and sadness. It was a few moments before he spoke up, "I-I… I know," He said softly, "B-But I… I just want to--"

"I know," Zoro interrupted again, nodding his head slowly (this time it didn't make him as dizzy), "You just want to help… Prolong my time. But you know me," He suddenly broke out in a wildly determined smirk. The kind he always got before a battle, "I'm not gonna go quietly," He coughed again, "I won't let this damn poison kill me when I'm lying in bed," He had to clear his throat, though it didn't help much, "doing nothing."

Chopper stared at him in awe for a moment before Zoro swung his feet over the bed and onto the wooden floor, once again making the reindeer bit his lip. He couldn't exactly argue with what was said; Zoro _wasn't_ going to let this poison take him down without a fight. It was like just another battle to him. And he definitely wasn't going to listen to Chopper about taking things slow. It's not like he ever did anyway…

But still, the fact that he _was _already moving around worried the Doctor. It wasn't that he didn't have faith in his friend's strength, it was just that poison was poison no matter who you were, and it would no doubt affect Zoro the same way it would affect everyone else.

"J-Just… Don't do anything rash, alright?" He ended the statement with his Doctor voice, "Absolutely no fighting, no training, and you'll have to--"

"What??" Although Zoro's voice was a shadow of what it used to be, Chopper still detected the same resentment and frustration at what was said. Chopper knew what got him.

"No training," He said succinctly, narrowing his eyes at the exasperating swordsman.

"Why?" Zoro muttered between his teeth, "I could at least--"

"No!" Chopper said again, this time firmer, "It'll be way too hard on your body! Especially with the kind of ridiculous training that you do! You'll only speed up the poison's spread!"

Zoro seemed to back off a little, though he still glared at Chopper with somewhat resentment. He _hated _not being able to train. Just doing nothing wouldn't cut it for him. And for how long did he have to go about it?? Well, obviously, not long, considering the poison…

"Chopper," His voice was more serious this time, "How long until the poison becomes, well… How long… Until it gets to the point where it could…" He searched for a nicer word to use for the reindeer's sake, but found nothing, "Kill me?"

Chopper froze again, the same sad emotions playing across his face. Zoro had asked him the same sort of question yesterday, but he couldn't bear to tell him… He swallowed down the lump in his throat, "About… Seven to ten days…" He couldn't help but remember that it would take them six days to reach this Marine base that was supposed to hold a cure for Zoro. That made his chances much slimmer.

Zoro's expression narrowed more. He looked to his side for a moment and then sighed, "… Well, I've got at least a week… Better than nothing."

Chopper looked up at him disbelievingly. This man knew he was poisoned, knew he was going to die, and even knew _when_ he was going to die. And yet he didn't seem frightened in the least… The Doctor had no idea how somebody could be so strong… It felt, to him, that Zoro was the only one who could possibly posses that kind of strength.

The swordsman seemed to be able to read the expression on his Nakama's face clearly, "There's no use in kicking and screaming, right?" He asked dryly, having to cough yet again, "That won't do anything to stop the poison."

Chopper looked down at his feet ashamedly, "Well, yeah… I-I just… I dunno…"

Suddenly the door was opened and a familiar face topped with a straw hat stepped inside. It was actually, Zoro noted mentally, the quietest entrance he'd ever seen Luffy have. Usually he'd throw open the door so forcefully that it splintered the wood wall it landed against. He wondered dully why his Captain was being so careful about his being quieter.

Luffy was in shock for a moment as he stared at Zoro sitting up on the bed, glancing at him in a questioning way. However, the shock immediately turned into pure happiness and he ran over to his First Mate with the clear intention of grabbing him in a back-breaking hug.

"Zoro!!!" He cried out happily as he ran over to meet him.

Chopper saw what his Captain's intentions were right away and quickly threw himself in front of Zoro, going into Heavy Point and sticking both arms out in front of him to block the excited raven-haired boy.

"Slow down, Luffy!!" Chopper ordered, "He just got up; you can't attack him like that!!"

"I wasn't gonna attack him!" Luffy protested, his voice muffled because of the giant hands pushing back his face, "I just wanted to say hi!!"

"It's the same thing with you, you idiot!" Chopper yelled.

Zoro's chuckle came out in little spurts, "It's okay Chopper," He said croakily, clearing his throat a little again, "You can let him go now."

Chopper opened his mouth to protest, but then sighed, glaring at Luffy once before shrinking back into Brain Point, "Okay… But no tackling!!"

Luffy jogged over to Zoro's side with the happiest of grins on his face, "How do you feel?"

Zoro rubbed the back of his neck slowly, "Ah… Better, I guess… Though I'm still sore as hell."

Luffy giggled in spite of Zoro's not so exciting news, "Shishishishi! Good!"

"So why'd you come in, Luffy?" He raised an eyebrow at his Captain, "Just to… Visit?"

"Oh!" He looked like he just remembered something, "That's right!" He turned to Chopper, "We talked about going to the Marine base thingy."

Chopper nodded in affirmation, "Alright. Has the plan changed?"

Luffy shook his head, "Nope; not really. Nami just told us more about it and stuff. Ooh! Ooh!" Once again, he looked like he remembered something, "Guess what?? This base we're going to? It's where they executed some of Gold Roger's crew!"

Chopper looked horrified, "R-Really?? So it's important then?" He wondered for a moment why Luffy found people getting killed exciting, then came to the conclusion that it was just the way he was.

"Uh-huh," He nodded, "Really important. At least, that's what Nami said. And huge too!" He turned to Zoro, "As big as Reverse Mountain!"

Zoro's eyebrows actually lifted up a notch, "What? A Marine base? Seriously?"

Chopper looked a little lost, but concluded that this place must be absolutely enormous if it were as big as _any _mountain, "But if it's so big…" He looked desperate, "W-Won't we get caught?"

"Nope!" Luffy said happily, "Nami said she's going to be working out a plan for the next few days until we get there."

Zoro was completely lost as to what they were talking about, but he did pick up the words 'the next few days' and frowned at the bad taste they left in his mouth, "Hold on a sec…" He said, "What exactly are you guys talking about?"

"We're going to this Marine base that the ship from yesterday was from so that we can find a cure for you," Chopper answered quietly. He seemed ashamed at what he said.

"And… This place will take several days to get to?"

Chopper nodded, "… Six days…"

Zoro looked surprised for a moment before he allowed the same scowl to come back on his face. Six days to get to the place where there'd be a cure? That was really cutting it kind of close…

Luffy's brow furrowed, just a little, as he noticed the change in atmosphere after Chopper had said how long it'd take. Why did they get so gloomy? Luffy was new to all of this poison stuff, so he had no idea what was going on. Granted, he knew that it was fatal, and he knew that Zoro's life was in danger. He would definitely save him; that much he knew. But still…

Zoro broke the uncomfortable silence, "… But seriously. I can't train at all?"

The atmosphere grew slightly brighter, even as Chopper started flailing around angrily, "No!! How many times do I have to tell you?! You can't put that much strain on your body!"

"So I'll just tone it down a little," Zoro offered as a compromise.

Chopper didn't budge, "No. That's final. No training or fighting of any kind! Doctor's orders."

Zoro jutted out his lower lip in resentment, knowing that he wouldn't be able to win this fight. When it came to forbidding things that Zoro liked to do, Chopper wasn't very merciful. Luffy took the liberty of laughing hysterically at the interaction between the two of them, only pausing when his swordsman started to cough hideously.

Chopper immediately rushed over to Zoro, changing into Heavy Point so that he could place his hands on the man's shaking shoulders and pat his back lightly, trying to alleviate the horrible hacking noise coming out of his throat.

"Zoro?" Luffy's brow immediately lined with worry and he ran over to his First Mate, standing by Chopper and staring at his green-haired friend with an almost protective gaze. It brought back to his attention how truly sick this man was… He didn't like it. This wasn't the strong invincible Zoro he knew, and he didn't like it at all.

After what seemed like an eternity, Zoro's coughing fit ended and he was left wheezing a little, trying to get back the air he lost. Chopper sighed in what sounded almost like relief, though he only took one hand off of Zoro's shoulders.

"Are you okay?" Luffy asked sincerely, leaning in to look the man in the eye.

Zoro looked up at his Captain with eyes that almost looked glazed over, and took a few shuddering deep breaths before responded, "Yeah…" He sighed. His voice was little above a whisper, "I'm… I'm good…"

Chopper looked down at him with concern, only now taking his hand off of the man's shoulder, "Are you sure? You don't feel any additional pain in your throat?"

Zoro shook his head slowly, "No… I'm fine," He cleared his throat, wincing a little, "Damn…"

"Y-You didn't… Cough anything up, did you?" Chopper asked hesitantly.

Zoro glanced down at the hand that he covered his mouth with, "No…" He chuckled brokenly and without humor, looking at his moisture-covered hand, "Nothing out of the ordinary… I guess."

Chopper sighed again, "_That's good…_" He thought, "_That means the poison is still fairly dormant_."

The Doctor knew that his diagnosis was correct. The poison inside of Zoro wouldn't actually go into its final stages until five to six days had passed. He was sure of that, but nevertheless, when the swordsman started coughing so violently a cold fear had washed over him that somehow he was wrong about the diagnosis. Luckily, he was wrong about his assumption. Zoro didn't cough up blood or anything, so they were still in calm waters for now.

"Man, I hate this…" Zoro mumbled in loathing, wiping his hand off on his shirt in disgust.

Luffy continued to stand by his First Mate protectively, like that could somehow guard him from having anymore of those coughing fits. After hearing Zoro's last statement, the guilt he felt earlier seemed to come back in full swing for a minute. It was his fault that Zoro was suffering like this, and he knew it. But he wasn't going to feel sorry for himself; no way. He had way more important things to worry about than himself.

He suddenly smirked at Zoro, "Well that's good," Zoro looked confused, "Because then when we get rid of it, you won't have any regrets."

It took the swordsman a moment to process what Luffy had said before he broke out into a smirk too. He gave another broken chuckle, "Sounds good to me, Captain."

**Author's Note: **

**I'm sorry for being so late!! *prays for forgiveness* You know, I'd been all excited about finishing this on Christmas Eve so that it could be a holiday present, and then look what happens! Tsk tsk… But oh well! I'm just really happy that I actually got this posted before the end of December! XD **

**Also, I think this is my longest chapter so far, which is exciting! And I'm sorry that there wasn't much action in this one, but I felt that things needed to be explained and set in motion… So yeah! Besides, it's going to take them six days to reach Red Fetter anyway…**

**Speaking of which! I spent a lot of time thinking about what to call this Marine base, but I couldn't think of a THING. So, I enlisted the help of my older brother, and after a few minutes of talking, he suggested Red Fetter. I thought I'd go along with it; sounded promising. **

**But it also sounded a little odd, which is one of the reasons why I went with it. One Piece, as you all most definitely know, has some pretty random names and random places and random people… Actually, it's just plain random! (For example, how did Oda-san think of Thriller Bark as a name??) I thought that Red Fetter sounded a little bit different and One Piece-ish, so I decided to go with it! **

**And yes, it is huge. XP Not as big as Impel Down, but huge. I wanted it to be hard for the StrawHats to find their way in (to just build up on the suspense and/or angst XD), and making Red Fetter huge and important seemed to be the thing to do to achieve that. **

**Heh… You all remember how I said in the first chapter that this wasn't going to be a very long story? Well… I think I lied. I just kept writing, and then after I started I kept on getting all of these ideas and stuff. So, yeah! No guarantee on how short or long this will be! **

**Thank you guys for being so supportive and awesome!! I really appreciate it! You all inspire me so much! I hope you'll keep reading and enjoying this story! **


	8. The Gears Are In Motion

**Reader Reviews – Chapter 7**

**Sora Tayuya: **_Really? You've heard it before?? Well, if you remember, please let me know! Yay! I'm glad you liked it! _

**Blade-Rose: **_Thank you! I'm glad you're enjoying it! :D Aw, I hope not! _

**callosum: **_I'm glad Red Fetter sounds realistic to you! That makes me all sorts of relieved. Haha, I'm glad you noticed those lines! Yeah, Zoro is a pretty simple-minded guy. XP Thank you! I really try hard with Chopper's transformations… I'm happy you noticed something so small! I really appreciate your review; it was very lengthy and humbling. Thanks a bunch! _

**dandy-chan: **_Oh, I know, right? Zoro is really a big baby when it comes to training restrictions. XD Angsty Luffy is never fun for me to write… T.T But I'm really glad you liked it dandy-chan! _

**The Wandering Swordsman: **_Whew, that makes me really relieved! I was afraid that Red Fetter wouldn't come across as very realistic, so your comment really helped me out! Thank you very much for the awesome review! You're one of the people I look forward to reading the reviews of the most! _

**borednerdsunited: **_Hahaha, I know, right? XP Woohoo! I'm glad you found it One Piece-y. Thanks for the review! I hope this chapter lives up to your expectations! _

**ArabianNinja: **_Thank you! No one has said much about how I write for Nami, so hearing a good comment about it is nice. Of course! Chopper does love his big brother Zoro. :D I hope you like this chapter as well!_

**PaperBagGhost: **_Thank you! I'm glad I have you hooked! Yeah, I figured once Zoro really knew the severity of his situation, he'd be a lot mellower… Woohoo for a Franky thumbs up! _

**Xx-Brat-xX: **_Thanks! Aw, I know! Luffy's just a little cutie! I hope you'll still forgive me even though my update speed was awful this time around… O.o _

**things24: **_Haha, it is when you don't expect the story to go beyond 5 chapters! Oh, I know! I hate them too! I'm sorry; I hope you're feeling better now! _

**Kamizacondor: **_Thanks! I'm glad you're enjoying this! Yeah, their bond is unbreakable. :D Thank you for being patient. *bows*_

**Silverchild of the winds: **_Thanks! Haha, I dunno. I guess Chopper's really intimidating when he tries. XP_

**Kai-Chan94: **Thank you!

**ZeldaAddict42: **_Haha, that's quite alright! I do that all the time! Thank you though; I'm glad my Robin came across alright. She's always been a little tough for me. Oh, I know! It's the cliché wait-until-the-very-last-minute-to-build-up-suspense type of deal, really. :D No, I haven't? Is it a movie? Zoro and Chopper do have an awesome relationship! I actually have a hard time remembering myself… But I can tell you who all knows: Zoro (of course), Chopper, Robin, and Sanji. The rest don't know yet. Thanks again! I love your extensive reviews!_

**Slipmaskin: **_Thank you! I know. It happens a lot to me, actually. XP Yes, I thought about that too. He probably could have dodged it. But I was going for the more dramatic 'he was too busy focusing on saving Luffy to block the shot' approach. I hope it works for you all the same! I do have trouble with that… I'm glad you pointed that out! I'll definitely try and work in some new phrases as best as I can! If you know me as an author, you'll know that I can't resist Zoro/Chopper Nakamaship. XP It's one my my biggest weaknesses. I'm really happy you enjoyed his interactions with Robin too! I'll be looking forward to hearing more from you! _

**SmileyDJingles: **_Thanks a lot! _

**Deadcrystal: **_Yes, it is quite large. Maybe not quite as tall as Reverse Mountain, per se, but quite tall. Really, I was just looking for something to compare it to. And a large part of the base is storage, living quarters, training areas, etc. But I'm glad you're liking the story all the same! _

**hitokiri oro-chan: **_Thanks a bunch! I'm glad you think it's an original plot. I have been worried that it's been done before… (By the way, your username is adorable! XD) _

**new moongirl: **_Oh, I dunno… You can never tell with me. *shifty eyes* Just keep in mind that I AM a Zoro fan and I love happy endings. XP Though I'm also a HUGE fan of tragedy/angst, so… It's kind of a big spectrum. Thanks! I'm glad you're enjoying Sanji's thoughts! _

**Kirai-Ninja: **_Thank you so much. I'm glad you like it! Ooh, that's low! I'm sorry! I hate it when computers do things like that!_

**ZOroronoaRO: **_Haha, it really is once you think about it! :D I'm glad you love it!_

**DarkTamera: **_Thank you! Angst is one of my favorite things to write, so I'm glad it came across well! I hope you'll enjoy this chapter as well! :]_

**LunaticV: **_First of all, thank you very much for reviewing every single chapter so far! I love to hear my readers' thoughts! And you seem like you're enjoying it so far, so that makes me even happier! Haha, yeah, Sanji's not as much of a muscleman as Zoro. XP Oh yes, it'll be very hard to locate the antidote. (Which is the whole point, hehe) I figured that Zoro wouldn't be one to sulk if he knew he was dying. If anything, he'd take it in stride. Chopper, I think, wouldn't want to worry the whole crew. Especially Luffy. But I'm going to have each of them find out eventually, so don't you worry! I know, poor Zoro! *evil grin* I dunno, WILL things be alright?? (XP) _

**A/N: Okay, I have to say something before this chapter actually starts. **

**This was the most reviews I have ever gotten for one chapter in ANY of my stories. Ever. I typed **_**two whole pages**_** of review responses, and that really made me happy. **

**Thank you so much, everyone! I'm so glad that people are this interested in my story! Please, keep up your wonderful reviews. **

* * *

The next two or three days passed by in an uninteresting blur for Zoro.

The swordsman had somehow persuaded Chopper to let him walk around the ship for a little while after Luffy had entered the Medical Bay. Just about everyone voiced more concern than excitement when they saw their Nakama up and moving again, which admittedly surprised Zoro.

Usopp had been, really, the only one even remotely visibly happy about seeing the man walking around. It was definitely reassuring to him, Zoro figured, to know that things weren't _too_ bad yet. Robin remained fairly indifferent. She had smiled (in that aggravatingly calm way that she always did) and said that it was good to see him up, but wasn't jumping up and down.

Nami and Sanji, however, were totally _not_ okay with Zoro being up. Nami had put on her- as Zoro aptly named it –witch face and demanded that he go back and get rest because he 'wasn't getting any better being up, and if being up caused the poison to spread faster, she would add one hundred-thousand berries to his debt.'

The cook surprised him, though. He expected a nonchalant 'whatever; that shitty Marimo can do whatever he wants' type of deal. What he got, though, was a stern look and a question of: should you really be up right now? Zoro was shocked into silence for only a moment before he scoffed Sanji off, of course, but the question still seemed to catch him off guard.

In the end, nobody could really stop the green-haired man from at least walking around. He maintained that since Chopper had taken away all of his other 'fun' activities, he at least deserved that privilege, and no one seemed to have a decent argument. Plus, arguing with Zoro usually only ended up in orders being disobeyed anyway.

But even being able to walk around didn't satisfy the antsy man. It was boring to say the least. Usually when they were sailing, he would train or nap and having only one of those options available just screwed him up. Sure, he liked to take naps, but not in place of training.

The only excitement the whole crew got in those few days didn't even involve _him_ any.

The second day they were sailing, Zoro noticed that the Marine ship they had been following had gotten closer and closer. He wondered if it was a good idea for them to be out in the open and clearly following them this way. Of course, he wouldn't have minded if the crew had to fight, but he wasn't allowed to. If Chopper even heard as much as the click of blades being drawn, he'd hold Zoro up in the Medical Bay for the entire week they were at sea.

The swordsman also noticed fairly early on in the day that the crew had assembled to the deck. Curiosity piqued, he casually walked over to the spot where Nami was currently talking and leaned against the mast.

"Alright everyone," She announced, "The first stage of the plan begins today," She pointed back at the Marine ship ahead of them, "It's simple. We invade their ship, put them out of commission, and then take their stuff."

"Take their stuff? What for?" Usopp asked curiously.

"I told you; its part of the plan," Nami answered, waving her hand as if to dismiss all doubts, "Just trust me."

"Okay," Luffy said, trying to get a grasp on the situation, "So we just go over there and beat 'em up?"

Nami shrugged, "Pretty much."

"So then what do we take, exactly?" Chopper asked, fiddling around with his hooves a little. He was still a tad nervous about the whole fighting thing that this crew had to do so much, but if it was for Zoro's sake, he'd be brave.

"I'll explain when we've taken them down," The navigator answered calmly. She had a sly smile on her face that suggested what she had to say wouldn't turn out good for the Marines they were about to engage.

"Yosh!" Luffy said, putting an eager foot on the railing and grinning in anticipation. Like Zoro, fights always gave him an adrenaline rush, "Let's go!"

"Hold on!" Nami swiftly punched her Captain in the head to dissuade him from launching ahead. He fell to the deck, hitting his head again and lying defeated on the floor, "I wasn't done explaining yet, idiot!"

She turned back around to the crew, "Not all of us are going to fight them," This earned a confused look from everyone. She pointed down to Luffy, who was currently securing his straw hat on his head and sitting up, "Only Luffy will be going."

This seemed to surprise everyone, even though they all knew that their Captain would be more than capable of beating the crap out of everyone onboard that ship. Usopp scratched the back of his head, "Why's that, Nami?"

"It's to assure the security of the plan Robin and I worked out."

Everyone still looked confused, though Robin looked at Luffy with a calm smile, "Is this a problem, Captain-san?"

"Nope!" Luffy smiled happily, "Sounds like fun to me!"

Zoro muttered an incomprehensible '_lucky'_ under his breath. Fighting would definitely help his restlessness. But Chopper- and probably the whole rest of the crew –wouldn't hear of it.

"So, Luffy," Nami turned back to him, "Once you've gotten those guys taken care of, just stay on their ship, okay? We'll be right behind you."

He nodded, "Okay. I get it," He gripped tightly onto the railing and started to walk backwards, stretching himself out. The crew automatically moved aside to make room for him, "Gomu gomu no…" He let go of the railing, shooting himself towards the Marine ship that had no idea what was about to happen to them, "Rocket!"

In less than ten seconds after he'd landed, yelling and the clanging of swords began to rise through the air. Nami started to give the crew various orders to help the Merry catch up with the currently stopped ship, though she was being surprisingly hushed and secretive about the whole thing. She urged everyone to keep themselves hidden as best as they could, which was quite confusing in itself.

Zoro hurriedly went to help Sanji tighten the sails, caught up in the usual hustle and bustle of changing the speed of the ship. Nami soon ordered that everyone bring the ship's speed down to a slow drift as they approached the Marine vessel, and they all followed suit.

It bothered Zoro to quite an extent that his hands were sweating like crazy when he pulled them off of the ropes.

He made a disgruntled sound and wiped them off on his pants. When he looked up, he was taken by surprise as Sanji gave him an odd look. It was like that stern one that he'd given the swordsman before, and the man- quite frankly –was tired of it. It unnerved him much more than it should have.

Zoro's gaze narrowed shortly and he quickly tore it away from Sanji. He didn't need that guy to look at him like he was a kid who had snuck out of the house when his parents had confined him to his room.

Luffy's excited giggles were the only noises that came from the Marine ship as the Merry approached its side. Knocked out Marine personnel littered the ground around him, and there wasn't a scratch to be seen on his body. The crew almost felt sorry for the unfortunate Marines…

"Are they all taken care of?" Nami asked, though there really was no need to ask.

"Yup!" Luffy replied happily, "No problem!"

"Good," she replied happily, hopping onto the ship from the railing of the Merry and being followed by the rest of the crew.

When the ship had come to a stop, Zoro instinctively went to the side to where the anchor was. Only when Sanji stepped in front of him did he realize that lifting an anchor probably counted- to the crew –as dangerous right now.

"What do you think you're doing, shitty swordsman?" Sanji muttered distastefully, turning his back to Zoro and stepping towards the large black anchor himself, "Chopper will have an aneurism if he sees you lifting the anchor."

Zoro scoffed, even though he knew the man was right, "Whatever, cook," He spat the last word, then raised an eyebrow at him, "So, what? You think you're going to lift that?"

Sanji scowled at him, "I've done it before, you bastard. Just because you work out like a freaking muscle head doesn't mean I can't take care of the anchor."

Zoro resorted to crossing his arms and staring at the scene before him like he was expecting a show. Sanji swore at the man in his head as he went ahead with lifting the anchor, suppressing a grunt in front of the swordsman. If he showed any weakness, he wouldn't be able to hear the end of it for weeks.

Zoro was mildly impressed. He half-expected the cook to teeter and fall off the edge of the ship… Granted, he could see the struggle in his eyes, but he knew that the man was trying not to show it. He had to commend him for that at least.

"Sanji-kun! Zoro!" Nami's voice came to them from the Marine ship. Sanji's eye immediately took on a heart shape and he turned in her direction as wavy as a piece of paper in the wind.

"Coming, Nami-swan!" He cooed.

Zoro rolled his eyes and followed behind the prancing cook, hopping over to the other ship and gathering in a circle with the others. Nami did a once-over of the group to make sure everyone was present before she started talking.

"Okay," She began, "Now that all of the Marines are taken care of…" She looked over each person as she said their name, "Usopp, Sanji-kun, and myself will search the ship for Marines wearing outfits our sizes…" A wily smirk appeared on her face again, "And take their clothes."

Everyone seemed shocked by this. Usopp spoke up first, "Uh… Why??"

"It's part of the plan," Nami said in an aggravated tone, like she had said that phrase a million times already, "Just do it. I'll explain this to you all later, trust me."

"Hai, Nami-swan~!" Sanji said without a second thought. He wasn't as hard to convince as the sniper. (Zoro was pretty sure that if Nami asked Sanji to jump off a cliff in that syrupy sweet malicious voice she had, he'd do it)

"Robin," Nami turned to the only other female on the crew, not even fazed by Sanji's willingness to do what she asked. She expected it.

The archaeologist must've known what Nami was going to say next, because she immediately nodded her head, "I'll go and investigate, Navigator-san," She turned around from the group and opened one of the doors on the ship that led below deck. The crew watched her leave their vision confusedly.

"What exactly is she investigating, Nami?" Chopper asked curiously.

"Well, basically…" Nami tried to put it the simplest terms she could, "She's lo0king for ID information."

"ID informati0n?" Chopper cocked his head to the side, "What for?"

"Oh, I think I get it…" Sanji mused, "We want to get the ID info for the people whose clothes we're taking?"

Nami nodded, "Yes, exactly."

"I still don't get it…" Luffy muttered, crossing his arms, "Why would we need information about random Marines?"

Nami sighed. She probably should've anticipated that her Captain wouldn't quite catch on, "Just wait until we find the outfits Luffy. Then I'll explain everything."

"So… We just go around checking everyone?" Usopp mumbled, scratching the back of his head with a hand and nudging a floored Marine with his foot. He hoped to high heaven that the person whose clothes he took wouldn't wake up when he was taking them. That would be quite awkward.

"Pretty much," Nami shrugged, "It may take a little while, but this needs to be done right."

Sanji and Usopp both nodded and then the three of them started walking around the ship and checking tags and the like on the KO'd Marines. The crew members left stood in semi-awkwardness for only a few moments before Robin walked back up on deck.

Nami, who hadn't really left the general vicinity of the front of the ship yet, dropped the person whose shirt tag she'd been previously looking at and turned towards Robin expectantly.

"Well?"

Robin nodded, "There are files down there, Navigator-san. They have some sort of number system in place of names, however. I assume that the Marines will each have identification numbers somewhere on their person, though, so it shouldn't be problem."

"Great," Nami smiled victoriously and went on with checking for proper outfits. She let out a huff of breath shortly and turned to Luffy, "Hey Luffy, did you happen to see any girls?"

"Hm?" The Captain tapped a finger to his chin for a moment before giving his navigator a completely lost stare, "I dunno."

"What do you mean you don't know?!" She fumed, "You _fought _all of them, didn't you?"

"Well yeah, but I didn't notice any difference between them when I beat 'em up."

Nami almost deadpanned. Of course he didn't notice! Leave it to Luffy to not even notice a person's gender when attacking them!! He was much too much of an idiot for his own good.

"A good lot of help THAT does me," She grumbled before going back to her 'work.'

Luckily, even though Luffy's idiocy didn't help her search, the navigator didn't have to look for much longer before she actually spotted a female amongst the piles of men. Shortly after she had found her target, Sanji and Usopp came around from the back holding up outfits that they had procured themselves.

It was a mutual decision that the people they had taken the clothes from should be tied up as to not be able to wake up and attack them. Though, after getting a beating from Luffy, everyone doubted if they would wake up for a few days.

"Alright! Robin?" Nami glanced over to the archaeologist as she and the others gathered together again.

Robin nodded and made her way back down to the area where she said she had found the files. Usopp glanced at the outfit he had procured with mild confusion, "So, uh, what now?"

"Now we tell the ID numbers of our Marines to Robin," There was a short silence after Nami talked in which everyone sat wondering how they were going to tell Robin if she had just walked away from them.

As if answering the crew's thoughts, an ear surrounded by flower petals suddenly popped up on the wooden deck in an open space by two downed Marines. Everyone jumped a little before they realized that it was indeed Robin.

"Okay, I'll go first," Nami said, reaching into one of the blue pants' pockets and feeling around inside. She was confused for a moment when she felt nothing and went into the other pocket. She finally decided to look inside and saw a number that looked sewed onto the inside of the pocket, "Clever…" She mumbled.

After announcing the long number at a level that she was sure Robin could hear, Nami turned to Sanji and Usopp, "Their ID numbers aren't on actual cards like I'd thought; they're sewn into the right pocket."

"Really?" Usopp questioned curiously, peeking into his pair of blue pants to see it for himself.

"I suppose it's somewhat easier to keep track of that way, huh?" Sanji commented after he had taken a look at his own number.

"I don't get it Nami," Luffy complained, hopping up to the railing of the Marine ship and kicking his legs back and forth, "Why are we doing this?"

"Just be patient, Luffy," Nami replied heatedly, "I told you I'd explain."

As if on cue, Usopp had just finished reading off his number to Robin (or rather, her ear). The ear soon disappeared from the deck in a flurry of flower petals and Usopp and Sanji had joined the semi-circle that was currently their crew.

It only took a minute for Robin to appear back on deck, holding three crème colored files in one of her hands. As she approached her friends, she handed Nami, Sanji, and Usopp their respective files. The three looked inside of them carefully and glanced over the lengthy information that they held.

"We need to memorize this stuff as best as we can," Nami said seriously, clapping her file shut, "The more we know, the smoother the operation will become," Sanji and Usopp nodded in unison and continued to read over what they had.

"So, what is this plan of yours?" Zoro raised an eyebrow and crossed his arms, "I'm guessing by the stealing of the uniforms that you guys are going to infiltrate this base. Am I right?"

Nami nodded slowly, "Yes. Or at least, that's the general idea."

"But… Why are only the three of you getting those uniforms?" Chopper questioned.

"Because only the three of us will be going," This brought Sanji and Usopp's attention away from the files.

"What?? I can't go!? Why not?" Luffy jutted out his lower lip in resentment.

"It seems like it'd be a lot more dangerous with that few of you!" Chopper said frantically.

"Actually, it's the more logical choice if you think about it," Robin interjected.

"Huh?"

"Just think about it… What would happen if all of us tried to go 'undercover' in that base?" Nami asked.

Everyone shared apprehensive glances. It would be 'screw hiding out, I'm gonna kick their asses' with Luffy, 'is that a tanuki in a Marine outfit?' with Chopper and 'maybe if I take this big hallway, I'll run into the antidote somewhere' with Zoro… It probably was a good idea that not all of them were going…

"Even if we managed to keep everyone quiet and had them sneak in successfully," Nami continued, "They'd be spotted right away. Luffy has a one-hundred-million berry bounty, Zoro has a sixty-million berry bounty, Robin has a seventy-million berry bounty, and Chopper's a reindeer!" The statement spoke for itself and needed no further explanation.

"Besides…" The navigator looked up at Zoro, "Zoro wouldn't be going regardless," She could see the fight in his eyes and continued before he had a chance to open his mouth, "You're sick Zoro. Wandering around that base in your condition would only help spread the poison. I know we need to get this cure as soon as possible, but bringing you with us is not a good idea."

Zoro scowled. He hated being a liability. But then again, he had a feeling that he would be stuck on the ship while the crew was doing their thing. Luffy made an annoyed sound suddenly, and crossed his arms.

"But Namiiii…" He grumbled, "I wanna help find the antidote thingy too!"

A vein popped out on her forehead, "I just told you why you're not coming, Luffy! You already give yourself away without thinking about it, so going into a huge Marine base with the goal of being sneaky will _not _work out!" She saw that he still had that same pouting expression on his face, and continued, "Besides, if somehow the Merry is discovered, we'll need someone to make sure _he_ doesn't die," She jutted a thumb back at Zoro.

The swordsman glared at Nami, "Your confidence is overwhelming…"

Suddenly Luffy seemed to get determined and punched a fist into his other hand, "Yosh!! I'll protect Zoro, then!"

"Now that's settled…" Nami mumbled, "Robin would be easily recognizable too, of course, but we already talked about it. She's just fine with staying on the Merry. Right?"

Robin smiled, "Of course."

"Added to the fact that Chopper would be easy to spot, he's the doctor," She glanced at the small reindeer, "If anything were to happen with Zoro, we would want him there."

Usopp gave Chopper a thumbs up and a smile, "We're counting on you, Chopper!"

"Yeah!" He nodded resolutely, standing up a little straighter for good measure. Zoro smiled slowly behind him, looking at the little animal fondly.

"I will assist you if I'm able, Doctor-san," Robin offered gently.

"O-Okay! Thank you Robin!" Chopper smiled up at the tall woman.

"S-So, I guess it's just us, huh guys?" Usopp muttered, looking at Sanji and Nami.

"Yep," The navigator nodded and glanced at her outfit once more. Her brow furrowed, "I don't like that it's come down to just the three of us myself, but that's how it needs to be if we actually want to pull this thing off."

Sanji nodded, "This is the safest option after all…" He looked up at Nami, "So, Nami-san, what exactly do we need to memorize here?"

"Everything," Nami responded dryly, "We're supposed to be impersonating these people, and well too, so we need to know them inside and out," She suddenly looked like she remembered something, "Oh! And we also need to make sure that these people have qualities similar to ours, like height, weight, eye color. That kind of thing."

"I made sure of that when I was looking for my outfit," Sanji nodded. He glanced over at Usopp, then put a hand to his chin, "Though I doubt any Marine on this ship has a nose quite like Usopp's…"

"Shut up!" Usopp defended, "Everything _else_ matches up with me!!"

"That's a good point…" Zoro mumbled, "How are you going to pull the whole nose thing off?"

"Already worked out," Nami smirked, "These files hold extremely specific things; even measurements of things like your head, neck, and nose."

"Whoa, really??" Luffy blinked, "That seems pretty silly. Why would they do that?"

"To prevent what we're trying to do," Nami stated simply, "But don't worry. I already instructed Robin to change the measurements of the nose that Usopp's guy has."

"He actually had a fairly long nose as well," Robin said calmly, "Not as long as Nagahana-kun's, of course, but long," She smiled.

"Thanks a lot Robin!" Usopp yelled heatedly.

"But how did you change it? Wouldn't they be able to tell if you wrote over the paper?" Chopper asked.

"Not really," Robin responded, "The files are all hand-written. All I had to do was alter the numbers slightly with a pen. It's quite a flaw on their part, actually."

"Oh wow. Lucky!" Chopper said with a smile.

Sanji looked back in his file, "Hirata Hiroaki… Huh. Not bad."

Hearing Sanji announce what his new name was somehow made Nami and Usopp want to look into their files as well. Nami was the first to speak up. A smile crossed her face, "Okamura Akemi. Cute!"

"It's a name worthy of your beauty, Nami-swan!!" Sanji said with a heart in his visible eye.

"What's your new name, Usopp??" Chopper asked excitedly, caught up in the thrill of an undercover mission.

"Yamaguchi Kappei…" Usopp responded slowly, looking over his file with a careful eye. He looked thoughtful for a moment before striking an epic pose, "Captain Yamaguchi!"

Chopper looked at him in awe. Zoro let his mouth twitch up in a smirk, "It does actually sound like an Usopp-ish name."

Luffy giggled, "Shishishishi! Yeah, it does!"

Robin glanced around once, "Navigator-san. We may want to continue on with the plan as soon as possible before the Marines regain consciousness."

Nami nodded, going back into serious mode again, "Yeah, you're right. We should. Everyone, here's what's going to happen: Sanji-kun, Usopp, and I will stay on this ship. We'll get changed immediately and then pretend to be knocked out with the rest of the Marines until they all start to wake up," She pointed to the Merry, "The rest of you will board the Merry and gain as much distance as you can from this ship without losing sight. The Marines will definitely be looking for us when they wake up, so we can't give them any clues."

The crew nodded to this information. Nami turned to Robin, "Robin, while I'm gone, I'll leave you in charge of the Log Pose," She unhooked the gadget from her arm and tossed it to the archaeologist, who caught it without any problems, "You'll fill them in on the rest of the plan when the time comes."

Robin nodded, "Of course."

"There will be some instances where you'll have to wing it a little, but I trust your judgment."

"Thank you Navigator-san. I'll act to the fullest of my ability."

"Also," Nami turned back to the crew, "you're all going to have to take the people we're impersonating back to the Marine and keep them someplace secure. It would be bad news for us if they were still here when we got dressed."

"Anyone got any rope?" Zoro asked casually.

"Already taken care of, Swordsman-san," Robin smiled, and put her hands in the crossed formation she always used in battle. After a few quick motions with her hands, she put her arms down, "They're tied up, Navigator-san."

"Great!" Nami smiled, "Thanks Robin. Luffy, you grab Sanji's double, Chopper, you grab Usopp's, and Zoro, you grab mine."

You could practically feel the heat emanating off of Sanji, "Hold on! This Marimo head doesn't know the first thing about handling a lady! Why should he--"

"She's still going to have under armor on," Zoro interrupted stiffly, "So keep your freakin' pants on, love-cook."

Zoro was actually surprised at how fast that shut Sanji up…

Chopper expressed some concern about Zoro lifting a person, but the swordsman quickly dismissed his fears. It was a girl after all. She probably didn't weigh much at all. However, Zoro thought that something was definitely wrong when, after placing the girl in a cabin on the Merry with the others, he was out of breath.

"_Damn it…_" He cursed hotly to himself. This was driving him crazy. Normally it took something over one thousand pounds to get him to have an actual workout. This girl was probably barely over one _hundred_. It let him know how badly he actually wanted them to get to the Marine base. The sooner they got there, the sooner they could find the antidote, and the sooner things would be back to normal.

Zoro stayed in the cabin for another minute or so to catch his breath. If Chopper saw him like that, he'd never live it down. As soon as he was sure that his breathing rate was passable, he stepped out onto the deck, where they were already beginning to put distance between themselves and the Marine ship.

The swordsman wondered briefly who had lifted the anchor…

"Good luck," Robin said from the railing, waving to Nami.

"We're counting on you guys!" Luffy yelled enthusiastically, throwing his fists up in the air.

Usopp gave him a thumbs up, which somewhat surprised Zoro. He expected the sniper to be shaking with fear already. Then again, this was an important mission… Zoro supposed that, when your Nakama's life was in danger, people could do out-of-character things. He smiled as Nami, Usopp, and Sanji sailed away.

"_Thanks guys…_"

* * *

"Okay everyone, we need to get changed, "Nami said, turning from the railing of the Marine ship as the Merry sailed away, "There's no telling when these guys will wake up. Though since Luffy was the one who took them out, it might be a while…" She mumbled.

Usopp shook his head, "Yeah, you're right… They probably won't be up until next week."

Sanji stood staring out after the Merry with a stern look on his face. He thought back to when he saw Zoro smile at Chopper. No one else probably noticed it… And he always acted so tough… "_That freakin' teddy bear…_" Sanji thought.

Zoro was truly a pain in the ass sometimes… Sometimes the whole crew wondered if he was even human or not. And that was what worried the cook the most. Because, whether the crew would acknowledge it or not, Zoro _wasn_'_t _invincible. And it was those short moments where he would gaze fondly at the crew or when he gave an icy glare to anyone who might be a threat to them that Sanji was reminded of that.

That asshole needed someone to watch his back… Zoro may not have been invincible, but that didn't mean the rest of them had to know. Sanji would make sure their swordsman _stayed _invincible.

Because, shitty Marimo or not, he was their swordsman. And the only one that Sanji would accept.

"Coming?" Nami called from behind him. She and Usopp were about to go to the lower deck to change. She smiled, "Hiroaki-kun?"

Sanji immediately swiveled around, "Hai, Nami-swaan!"

Nami eyed him dangerously, "Excuse me?"

"… Hai, Akemi-swaaaan!!"

"Better."

**Author's Note: **

**I am officially the worst updater in the history of updaters… O.o So sorry guys!! Really! I wanted to give you all this chapter back in January, but my computer AND laptop both crashed… Needless to say, that delayed my plans a little. **

**However, our computer is fixed and better than ever, AND I got a new laptop! (Which I aptly named Mihawk because he's awesome :D) So! I hope to dish out these reviews faster now that I have working machinery! **

**Also! Did any of you notice the names that I had picked out for Sanji, Nami, and Usopp's Marines? *clever smile* That's right! Those are the names of their Japanese voice actors!! I was racking my brain trying to figure out names for them, and then just figured: "Hey, why not their seiyuus??" Oh, and their names were introduced in a Japanese fashion: last name first and first name last. So when Nami called Sanji Hiroaki and he called her Akemi, they were calling each other by their first names… Just thought I'd clear that up! :) **

**I hope you're all still enjoying this story! Like I said, I'll try to have updates up faster than this one in the future! Thank you for all of the favorites, alerts, and wonderful reviews! They keep me goin'! **


	9. Welcome to the Marines

**Reader Reviews- Chapter 8**

**Blade-Rose:** _Thank you! I'm glad you liked it! :D I hope you enjoy this chapter!_

**Sanosuke Hidane:**_ Yay! I'm glad you thought so! A lot of people liked that idea. :) And thank you! I'm g lad you caught the importance of Sanji's thoughts!_

**things24:**_ Oh, really? Haha, awesome! Ooh, I know how that goes! I feel for ya, my friend! I'm glad you noticed. Yeah, Zoro's really starting to realize that he's going downhill. _

**dandy-chan:**_ SUPA SPIES!! Haha! Of course! XD I'm glad you thought so! ;) Yeah, Sanji and Zoro are besties, as you said! That's quite alright dandy-chan; I totally understand about being busy. *is glad that spring break is here* Thanks for the review! Your input is appreciated, as always!_

**ZeldaAddict42:** _Well, I'm glad it was a good excuse! It really inhibited me for a while. Yeah; it'll definitely be a challenge for them! I guess you'll just have to wait and see how they do… *shifty eyes* Oh, I know… Writing for a sad Zoro always makes me sad. T.T Thank you! It means a lot to me that you say Sanji's in character! I try and be careful about that. Thank you for the nice review!_

**LunaticV-Losing to de Darkness:**_ Oh, I know. I am so very mean to the poor StrawHats! XD Yeah! Sanji pretends to be a tough guy, but we all know he cares about Zoro! I guess you'll just have to see… *evil eyes* Shya! Zoro is SUCH a teddy bear! XP Thank you! Haha, I'm glad you like the name! He's a very dependable laptop! Happy you're enjoying the story, too! Hope you'll continue to!_

**Sora Tayuya:** _Aw, thank you so much! It's awesome to hear that a fellow One Piece lover enjoys my work! Yeah, poor Zoro… Nothing's really working out for him! Of course! Sanji does care about the Marimo! :D Ooh, I know how that is… Driver's Ed is not too much fun to sit through. I'm glad I'm over and done with it! Being addicted to Kingdom Hearts is never a bad thing! It's an awesome game! Though I appreciate the nice words very much! Thank you for another great review!_

**Pom Rania:**_ Haha, I'm glad you liked that little piece! I actually did base that comment on that arc, too! It was a good one! Thank you for the review!_

**borednerdsunited:**_ Hooray! I'm happy you're excited!! And yes, there's going to be plenty of action soon, when they reach Red Fetter. So sorry about the late update! Hope you'll still enjoy! _

**ArabianNinja:**_ Thanks! :D Appreciate the review! I hope you'll like this chapter!_

**sam:**_ Thank you! Glad you like it! _

**callosum:**_ I always smile when I see the nice long reviews you give me. :) Yeah; everyone's quite worried about their swordsman, though he doesn't seem to get what all the excitement is about. XD Actually, that was a good guess! The ship that Nami, Sanji, and Usopp infiltrated is one of Red Fetter's flagships, and it's HUGE. There are tons of people, and not much time for them to 'get to know' each other, so that gives the infiltrators an edge! Haha, thank you! I'm glad you enjoyed that part! Thank you once again for the lovely review; your input means a lot! :3_

**cb:**_ Oh, wow. I'm glad you're liking my story, but I don't want you to get in trouble with your parents… O.o But thank you! Yes, there will be at least three more chapters (probably more, knowing me XP), so you can rest easy there! Thank you for the review!_

**QuietInsomniac:**_ Thank you so much! I'm happy to hear that you think I have everyone in good character; I strive for that! I know, the poor guy… X3 Hope you enjoy this installment!_

**The Wandering Swordsman:**_ Hahaha, I know, right? It would be a BAD idea to let Luffy come along on an undercover mission. I'm glad you like it, and that you noticed Usopp's sudden bravery. I tried to make that apparent. Hope you like this one!_

**AllBlueChaser:**_ Thanks! Sanji is always fun for me to write; I'm glad you found him to be in character! _

**Tony WildRiver:**_ Thanks! Sanji's little thoughts inside his head are one of the things I like writing most in One Piece. I'm glad you liked it! Hope you'll enjoy this chapter as well!_

**Noska:**_ Thanks! And I'm glad that you tried to give me a constructive comment; those are appreciated! Hope you'll keep on reading! _

* * *

"Ugh, this uniform is completely unflattering!" Nami complained with a frown, looking over herself after she had gotten her new Marine attire on and walked back out on to the upper deck.

Usopp had just finished stuffing all that he could of his hair into his new hat as Nami came back up. He raised his eyebrows at her, "Really, Nami, is this the best time to be upset about your clothes not being flattering?"

"Hey, what did I say about that?" The Navigator snapped, putting her hands on her hips.

"O-Oh, sorry," Usopp said nervously, rubbing the back of his head, "… Akemi."

"There we go," She said grumpily, crossing her arms, "We can't afford to slip up and call each other by our real names here. It literally could be the difference between life and death. And not just for us."

Usopp glumly remembered the whole reason they were there going 'undercover' in the first place. However, his somber silence was shortly broken by the cooing of Sanji, who had instantly gone googly-eyed after Nami had finished speaking.

"Any outfit looks wonderful on you, Akemi-swan!" He prattled on. Surprisingly, Nami didn't make much of a reaction. Of course, that was probably because the chef had actually remembered to use her new name.

"I'm actually surprised, Usopp," Nami said, shifting her weight to one leg. She looked at the sniper with a scrutinizing expression, "You look a lot different with your hair all tucked up like that. I almost don't recognize you."

"Really?" Usopp smiled. He sighed in relief, "Good. I was afraid it wouldn't work out."

"'Cept for the nose, of course. No one can disguise that thing," Sanji added.

"Will you stop making nose jokes, Sanji?!"

"Hey! What did I just tell you, idiot??" Nami growled.

Sanji immediately had hearts in his eyes, "Aaaah, Akemi-san is so wonderful when she's angry!"

He was shocked out of his stupor when he felt one of the Marines at his feet move. It was more of a twitch of the man's hand than anything else, but it still was enough of a movement to warrant the cook's concern.

"Shit," He cursed heatedly, "Guys, we need to get into position!"

Nami and Usopp automatically understood, and all arguments died. The urgency in Sanji's voice was enough to startle them into action anyway. The three all immediately ran to the spots where their doubles had been knocked out and tried their best to look like they were out as well. (Usopp was pretty confident about it, since he had quite a bit of experience in that department)

Thankfully, it only took a minute or two for everyone to start coming back to. The three StrawHats silently thanked the gods that Sanji noticed that little twitch the one Marine made. If he hadn't, they probably wouldn't have been able to get to their spots in time and, well… They preferred not to think about what would happen if they were caught.

Sanji decided to slowly get up as he heard others close by him getting back to their feet as well. Low grumbling was at first heard as the Marines gathered their bearings, staggering up and grabbing their rifles and sabers in reflex. The cook quickly glanced to each side to try and get an idea of what he should do.

"… _I probably have a weapon or something around, right?" _He thought, looking around his immediate area. As if in response to his question, the blade of a saber only two feet away from him glistened in the midday light. Sanji's eye was immediately drawn to it, especially since it was one of the only weapons not being picked up.

He reluctantly grabbed the weapon and the sheath beside it, securing both at his waist before standing up all the way and sparing a look around the ship at the recovering Marine unit. The low grumblings shortly turning into frenzied shouting as Marines yelled at each other asking what had happened and wondering how 'one kid' managed to take them all down.

"Enough!!" A loud and commanding voice boomed.

For some reason, everyone straightened up immediately as soon as they heard the earthquake of a voice. Sanji automatically assumed that it was some commanding officer or something.

A rather large and bulky Marine with dark skin and a scruffy brown beard appeared on the upper level of the deck. He appeared to have a few good bruises and marks on his face. Sanji was actually impressed. Luffy really knocked _everyone _out. The man had a large Marine coat on, so the cook thought that he probably was the one in charge here… That coupled with the fact that everyone instantly straightened up when he yelled at them.

Not wanting to gather any unnecessary attention, Sanji stood up straight as well. He glanced around the ship to see if Nami and Usopp had done the same. If any of them brought on attention, it could mean being figured out. If they were figured out, well, the after-effects weren't too pleasant to think of.

Luckily for them, the cook's other two crewmates had caught on rather fast. He actually had to really strain to recognize them, which was both a good and a bad sign. The man with the beard addressed the group again:

"We will _not_ lose our cool in the face of this problem," He continued sternly, his gaze narrowing down at the recruits on the lower deck. Sanji felt a few Marines by him shift a little uncomfortably. They probably wanted to yell about how angry they were about being beaten by a 'scrawny kid.' Everyone that Luffy beat up did.

Sanji chuckled a little on the inside.

"There's no doubt in my mind that the pirate who attacked us was StrawHat Luffy," The man continued, gritting his teeth, "I've seen his wanted poster plenty of times. I don't know what his motives are for attacking us, but it's clear that he took down all of us," He eyed over his still-bruised crew, "It's clear that his one-hundred million berry bounty is well-deserved."

Sanji couldn't help but think, "_Damn straight._"

"I trust that there were no fatalities?" He eyed the center of the group, where one of the recruits stepped forward with a salute.

"No, Commander Gorgon, sir," The recruit said loudly, "There were no fatalities. And we should be able to efficiently handle the amount of casualties that were sustained."

"Good," Gorgon nodded. His tone was pleased, but his hard stare seemed to suggest otherwise, "Everyone is to go back to their original posts. However! We will be on high-alert for any suspicious activity. It will still take four more days for us to arrive back at Red Fetter, and there is always a possibility that the StrawHat will attempt another attack. We will _not _allow ourselves to be caught off-guard again!"

"Sir! Yes, sir!" The troops all responded, saluting in almost-perfect sync. (The almost part, of course, being Sanji, Nami, and Usopp, who had to quickly shout out too and make the best salutes they could muster)

It was like clockwork after that. With Commander Gorgon's dismissal, every Marine instantly ran back to their stations. Sanji thanked high heaven once again that Nami had them memorize the information in their doubles' files. Granted, he himself wasn't able to take in _everything_, but he still knew enough to get by the four days they would be sailing.

"You! Boy!"

Sanji turned his head to his left and met the stern gaze of another Marine, who looked like he was a higher rank than Sanji was supposed to be.

"Yes sir?" Sanji replied, making sure to remind himself to stand up straight. He had a bad habit of slouching and he was sure they would frown upon that here.

"Your name?"

"Ensign Hirata Hiroaki, sir," Sanji was confused. Why would the guy want to know his name?

"Fix your hair, Hirata," The man instructed, pointing at Sanji's face, the latter of which was half covered by his hair, "I realize we were just attacked, but you should still maintain the dress protocol."

Sanji felt little butterflies in his stomach. Shit. He had forgotten about the hair thing, "Oh, yes sir, thank you for reminding me," He- albeit with the tiniest hint of reluctance -lifted his hat up a little and swept the hair in front of his face up, putting the hat back down once all of the hair was out of his face.

It was weird being able to fully use two eyes…

He saluted, "I'm afraid I was caught up in all of the commotion. It won't happen again sir."

The Marine nodded and turned around, "Right. As you were, son."

Sanji turned around the opposite way to go to his post, and just caught Usopp's eyes widening to the size of two watermelons. He bit back an audible growl and instead settled for a short glare that said: '_Make a scene and your shitty ass is GRASS.' _

Immediately getting the message that Sanji was sending, (his glare was much more frightening when he had two eyes to glare with) Usopp bit his lip and swiveled around to get to his assigned post. On any normal day, he would've started freaking out and shouting about how Sanji actually had _two _eyes!

He and Luffy had secretly been putting on a bet about what Sanji had underneath that hair of his. Usopp had maintained that Sanji actually had _no eye _underneath the hair, and he was just ashamed of it, so he hid it. And Luffy, well… Luffy had insisted that Sanji could shoot beams from his left eye, and he covered it with hair so that they wouldn't be going off all the time.

In Usopp's opinion, his own decision sounded much more reasonable.

Unfortunately, neither of their assumptions had been right. Sanji did indeed have two eyes, and his left one did not shoot beams. Both eyes were perfectly normal, and-truthfully -that made Usopp disappointed. But also, it made him wonder… Why did Sanji always cover up his face with his hair like that if there was nothing wrong with his eye??

However, as the sniper approached his post, thoughts of Sanji's face were long-forgotten. He clearly had better things to be thinking about. Like how to keep his cool and not get caught, for example. (Luckily, his double's weapon was a gun, and he was pretty sure that he could take care of himself if they were attacked for some reason)

He briefly wondered about Nami… He doubted that Sanji would have any troubles, if push came to shove, but Nami… He wasn't so sure about her fighting. She probably didn't have much experience with a gun or a sword, so Usopp hoped that she wasn't expected to do a 'performance test' or anything.

But then again… She _was _Nami. She had more cunning than he and Sanji combined. She could probably sneak her way out of anything if she had to. Usopp smiled a little. Yeah; she would be fine.

* * *

By the end of the day, the StrawHat members were about used to the goings on of the Marine ship. (Flagship Number Twelve, as they soon learned) Luckily for them, it was a pretty large ship with a lot of people, so no one seemed to notice them.

As everyone stepped into the large mess hall (Really; it was _enormous_), Sanji wondered how they were all going to meet up. He figured that he and Usopp would at least be in the same section as him when they went to bed, but how would he be able to meet up with Nami? She couldn't rightly sneak out, (Not that Sanji doubted her wonderful skills. Mellorine!) because it wouldn't be safe for them to run the risk of being caught.

He chewed on his lower lip and wished there was a cigarette there.

Fortunately for him, an opportunity presented itself as everyone filed into the Mess Hall. There were six or seven different doors that led into the place, where Sanji assumed that the different positions all came in from. He quickly scanned the sea of blue and white for Usopp and Nami, but it was rather hard. Everyone looked the freakin' same with their hats covering their faces and their outfits matching.

As Sanji's section came in, the officer in charge of them addressed the entire group. Everyone in his 'branch' immediately gave him their entire attention. The man announced that a volunteer was needed from the section to keep watch outside while everyone else ate. The volunteers would eat later. The way he said it made it sound like it was a daily thing, which it probably was.

Sanji's ears immediately caught the opportunity. He quickly shot his hand up before anyone got the chance, probably surprising some of them with his promptness. The man in charge blinked and then looked at Sanji.

"What is your name, Marine?"

"Ensign Hirata Hiroaki, sir," Sanji saluted for good measure.

"Right; Hirata…" The man said his name like he was supposed to remember it, "You'll be our volunteer. Off you go."

"Sir!" Sanji turned and sifted his way through the rest of the Marines in his section, making his way out to the deck.

"_Now hopefully the other two will get the same idea…_" He thought as the cool evening air hit him in the face. It managed to shock him due to the fact that he still wasn't used to feeling air on the left side of his face.

The cook had taken the volunteer position in the hopes that Usopp and Nami would think of the same thing and they could get a chance to talk amongst themselves. He didn't see how they would be able to otherwise.

He walked up to the railing in front of him, watching the sun set and fighting the urge to lean against the wooden object. It was something he commonly did back on the Merry, but it would feel out of place for him to do it here. At least… Not when Usopp or Nami weren't around. It would feel too much like relaxing, and he definitely wasn't relaxed here.

"Ensign Hirata, what a coincidence…"

Sanji turned around as he heard a low exaggerated voice that was all too familiar. He smirked at the lanky figure who was trying to look sinister.

"Well, well, Ensign Yamaguchi; a coincidence indeed."

Usopp turned his head up and gave Sanji a smile before joining him at the railing, standing with his hands folded behind him. The cook chuckled at the confident air the sniper now had about him. He was really playing into his character.

"You sure seem like a different person. Even the way you stand is different," He said quietly.

Usopp snickered, much like he normally would, "Really? Well, that's good. I'm supposed to be twenty-one anyway," He said, just as quietly as Sanji.

"Yeah, you're doing well so far. Haven't gotten caught yet, so that's always a good thing," Sanji's mouth twitched up in a smirk.

"What are you two boys doing over here? Surely you know you're supposed to be on guard."

He didn't even have to look. Though it was lower than normal, Sanji would recognize that sexy voice anywhere. He fought back the tremendous urge to yell 'mellorine!' as he and Usopp turned around to greet Nami.

"Hello Hiroaki-kun; Kappei-kun," She said with a wily smile on her face.

"Hello Akemi-san," Sanji said with a large smile that he probably should've subdued, "Fancy seeing your lovely face out here on guard duty."

Nami didn't respond verbally at first, being as she had to take a shocked step back when Sanji turned to talk to her. Her eyes widened, and she had to blink a few times to comprehend what she was seeing.

Sanji was looking at her… With _both _eyes!

Usopp was the first to realize what was going on, and he couldn't help but smile, "I know, right?" He whispered hurriedly. An excited and familiar gleam twinkled in his eyes. For the moment, he was out of character, "He has a face!"

The cook finally realized what was going on and rolled his eyes in Usopp's direction, "Oh come on…" He muttered, "Is it really that big of a deal? Yes, I in fact _do _have a face."

"Wow, S--Hiroaki-kun…" Nami caught herself before she slipped up with his name, "Did someone call you out on it?"

"Yeah, actually," He said, "Nothing serious. It's just some dress code thing. I probably should've thought of it ahead of time."

"It looks like you were…" Nami eyed Sanji's left eyebrow.

Sanji chuckled nervously and rubbed the back of his head with his hand, "I guess I spaced… I had put on the stuff after you had helped me the first time and, well, I was in a rush…"

"Stuff??" Usopp said curiously.

"Yeah," Nami pointed at Sanji's face, "Don't you notice something different about his face?"

It took Usopp a few seconds of hard and awkward staring at Sanji's face before his own lit up in realization, "His eyebrows!" It was a hushed exclamation.

"Exactly," Nami smiled.

Much to Usopp's surprise, Sanji's eyebrows were as straight as could be. They no longer held their trademark curl. He guessed it had been Nami's doing, but… How could she have just made the curls disappear??

"Whoa… But how did you…?"

"A little cover-up, a little eyeliner," Nami shrugged, "It can do wonders!"

"I'll say…" Usopp mumbled, "So… It's makeup then??"

Nami nodded, "Yup!"

"And… you only applied it to one eye, Akemi?"

"Yeah, I didn't even think about the whole hair thing," She admitted, "Good think Hiroaki-kun thought ahead."

"So…" Usopp looked like he was holding back a laugh, "So then… You applied the makeup to the other side of your face, Hiroaki?"

Sanji grabbed him by the scruff of his shirt, "You make ONE gay joke about me, long-nose, and I swear I'll tear off your arms and _beat_ you with them," The threat was made in such a low and vicious tone that, even after being released, Usopp had to really focus to stop his appendages from shaking.

Nami shook her head, "Anyway, we had to do what we had to do. They would definitely notice if he still had curly eyebrows. Besides, it's working out great so far."

Usopp took another long hard stare at Sanji's face, causing the cook to get even more aggravated with him. It didn't help that he hadn't had a cigarette for six or seven hours now.

"What?" He asked quietly but heatedly.

"So why DO you wear your hair over your left eye, Sanji?" The sniper finally asked, "I mean, there's nothing wrong with your eye."

Sanji look frustrated and let out a huff of breath, "Because I can, that's why."

"No, seriously!"

"I'm being serious!" Sanji hissed, "It's just a hairstyle. I'm not trying to hide any disgusting birthmark or scar or anything. It's just the way I prefer to style my hair. Nothing more, nothing less. So let it go already…"

"… But it just doesn't seem--"

"Okay then, why do you wear your hair long?"

"Huh?? Why?"

"Yeah."

"… I dunno. I just do."

"Exactly my point. I don't do it because I have to hide something; I do it because I want to. Get it?"

Usopp crossed his arms. He seemed upset that there wasn't anything more to why the cook wore his hair the way he did, "… So that's it?"

"That's it," Sanji sighed.

"… Are you two done?" Nami asked angrily, hands on her hips. She looked like she'd been expecting an answer for a while now.

"Of course, my dear," Sanji cooed, immediately putting on a joyful face for her.

"So, how did things work out today for the two of you?" Her voice took on a more serious tone.

"Just fine for me," Sanji replied, back in his quieter tone, "Aside from the whole 'hair' issue, I had no troubles."

"Same here," Usopp said, "It was pretty simple. The hardest part of the day, really, was the training bit, and that wasn't _too _hard to adjust to," His face took on a pale shade for a moment, "Though now I sorta feel like my arms and legs are going to fall off from all those exercise routines from hell…" He had never been one for extensive knuckle push-ups.

"Easy for you to say," Nami scoffed, "You actually know how to shoot a gun _well_. I've touched maybe three or four my entire life. It was hard to try and pretend like I was on par with the training Marines here…" She decided to leave the exercise routines out, since she couldn't even describe how worn out she was from them.

"What about you, Hiroaki?" Usopp eyed the saber at Sanji's waist, "You have a sword. How did that work out?"

Sanji shrugged and gripped the weapon's hilt, "Actually, not bad…" He looked down at it, "Got a few compliments, believe it or not."

"Really??" Both Nami and Usopp seemed surprised by this.

"Really," The look that he gave the sword almost seemed affectionate now, "Said they'd never seen a style quite like the one I used before."

"Wow. That's pretty amazing… Lucky break, huh?" Nami smiled.

"… I guess I learned more than I thought from fighting that shithead…"

Usopp and Nami quickly became somber after Sanji finished speaking. They both knew who he was talking about right away, and the realization made the overall mood gloomier.

It wasn't just what Sanji said, though, that caused the reaction from his crewmates. It was how he said it. He was looking at the sword like it was a long-lost friend, and his tone of voice made it sound like he was reminiscing about memories from days past. Beneath its rocky exterior, Nami and Usopp knew that Zoro and Sanji's relationship was very brotherly. Knowing that just made what was said sound sadder. Almost like the swordsman was already gone.

Usopp smirked and looked at Sanji's saber with fondness as well, "Not even here, and yet you still manage to save us in some way…" He said quietly.

Nami smiled, staring hopefully out onto the ever-setting sun, "Like always."

"Good ol' Marimo…" Sanji muttered with a smirk.

"_You'd probably be impressed if you knew that I've actually been paying attention in our fights…" _The cook thought, "_Shitty bastard… You'd better hang on to your goddamned life. We're going to save your sorry ass whether you want us to or not." _

**Author's Note:**

**I am so sorry everyone!! *bows head and prays for forgiveness for the billionth time* I should've updated this waaaay earlier! But! (Here comes the excuse!) **

**I had a particularly nasty case of Writer's Block this time around. I don't know why, but it took me forever to get inspired enough to write for this. O.o Usually, that's not a problem for me. But this time, even when I was in a good One Piece writing mood, my brain was sending me NO signals! So… I'm sorry! T.T I do hope that this chapter, though not as long as the previous one, is to your liking. **

**And yes, in case you couldn't tell, Sanji swears when he gets emotional. XD *referring to the last line or two* It's just his own way of showing that he cares! **

**I thought it would be a fun idea to give Sanji's alias Hiroaki a sword as a weapon, just because the irony would be too perfect. I wanted to have an instance mentioned as well where Sanji says that he actually isn't doing too badly with the sword. Of course, the reason is because of all the fighting he's done with Zoro! I dunno. It worked to me. :P **

_Luffy had insisted that Sanji could shoot beams from his left eye, and he covered it with hair so that they wouldn't be going off all the time. _

**My little brother and I somehow got into a conversation a while ago about what Sanji was hiding underneath his eye. Somewhere in that conversation, he raised the possibility of Sanji being the Cyclops of One Piece. I.e., being able to shoot beams from his left eye. XP I thought it was a truly awesome idea, and I've always wanted to use it in one of my stories. So here we are! I figured, of everyone on the crew, Luffy would definitely think up that crazy idea. He loves beams, anyway, so there we go! **

"_A little cover-up, a little eyeliner," Nami shrugged, "It can do wonders!" _

**I mean, come on, Sanji's curly eyebrows would definitely be a problem if he were going undercover. And what better way to remedy that problem then with make-up?? Oh, and if some of you are wondering how the make-up will stay on his face for four days, Nami has really, REALLY good stuff. Like… Really good stuff. It can stay on for a while, if you let it. *making this up for the sake of the story* And she DOES spend a lot of money on herself, when you think about. She would only want the best! **

"_It's just a hairstyle. I'm not trying to hide any disgusting birthmark or scar or anything. It's just the way I prefer to style my hair." _

**I actually spent a lot of time today trying to think of some special reason why Sanji covered up his face. A lot of things have been done (unibrow, scar, birthmark, etc.), and finally I just settled for the most reasonable one. It is JUST a hairstyle. I mean, really. Once you think about it, why do people in modern day society wear their hair like Sanji's? Because they want to!**

_Beneath its rocky exterior, Nami and Usopp knew that Zoro and Sanji's relationship was very brotherly.___

**Heck yes it is!!**

**So, despite my tardiness with this update, I hope you all enjoy it and leave me a review with your thoughts! :D Next time, we'll see more of what's going on with the Going Merry! **

**Take care! And thank you all for reading! **


	10. All of a Sudden

**Reader Reviews – Chapter 9**

**love-of-fire:**_ Thank you very much! I'm really glad to hear that! It makes me happy to know that I inspire others! I really appreciate all of the wonderful comments; thank you again! Hope you like this chapter!_

**Taryn Steambattle:**_ Thank you! Glad you like the idea of liquid seastone. Also, I'd like to thank you for the comment about Chopper, Zoro and drinking. I included it in this chapter! :) Whether it did or not is totally up to you. ;P Thanks again! Glad you like it so far! _

**Sora Tayuya**_: That's totally fine! I understand about spring break! Thank you muchly! I'm glad you thought it was well-paced. I was nervous about that aspect of it. Thank you for the forgiveness! T.T_

**ArabianNinja:**_ Oh, blindness? Huh. I've never thought about that before, but it's certainly a possibility. Shya! They're brothers through and through! Thanks for your thoughts! Hope you enjoy this installment! :D_

**Linhae:**_ Thank you very much! It's a big honor for me to hear something like that! Oh, I know! I miss the Mugiawaras too! T.T They need to get back together again! Thanks again; hope you like this chapter as well!_

**verunder:**_ Thank you! Sorry for being so late with this chapter! Hope you enjoy!_

**Pom Rania:**_ Hahaha, Hooray! I made someone love Sanji more! XD Thanks for your thoughts!_

**dandy-chan:**_ Long reviews always make me happy; especially if they're from dandy-chan! Yeah, Nami's just a big ol' hypocrite. XP Really? Well that's cool. I was expecting to get flamed somewhat, actually, for not giving Sanji some weird defect. I'm glad it was original! And yay for squealing! Gushing over an awesome anime guy is always good! Thank you dandy-chan! Hope you like this chapter too!_

**Silverchild of the winds:**_ Thanks! I'm glad you liked it! Yeah, Luffy must've shown some serious restraint. Really? Huh. It's the total opposite for me. I love long hair, but it's really hard to maintain well. :/ Hope you like this chapter!_

**cb (anonymous):**_ Yeah, I love torturing Sanji almost as much as Oda-san does. XD Yessir! This chapter is full of Zoro! Hope you like it! _

**AllHerosWearHats:**_ Thank you very much! It's been really fun to write! :D Hope you like this chapter!_

**ZeldaAddict42:**_ I always love your reviews; nice and long! Anyways, yes, Nami is really a hypocrite. That's true though; if they called her on it, she'd probably beat them up. XD I actually thought about the hair thing for a long time. Finally I decided that the Marines would want to be all neat and orderly. Kind of like how the army has hair length regulations. Hahaha! That WOULD happen to Sanji though, wouldn't it? That's a good point Zelda-chan. Who knows what kind of attention Sanji will attract. *shifty eyes* Yeah… That was another thing I thought a lot about. Observation probably WOULDN'T translate into actual use, but for the sake of the story let's say that Sanji's really talented. XP Thank you very much! I always love hearing your thoughts!_

**lochrann:**_ That's alright! Don't worry, I do that ALL the time. I love a story to bits and then forget the review… -.-' Thank you muchly! I'm glad someone is happy with my decision! :D I hope you like this chapter as well! _

**LunaticV:**_ Aw, thank you. I was aiming for sweet! Yup. Four days is a short time! Godspeed, Merry! Hope you enjoy this chapter!_

**The Wandering Swordsman:**_ Haha, awesome! I'm glad you love the randomness. Really? Wow. Oda-san would say that, wouldn't he? Well, I hope you'll like this chapter as we pan back to the Merry! _

**callosum:**_ Haha, yosh! The mystery is that there's no mystery! I like it. :D Yeah, I figure Nami would be good at undercover stuff since she was a thief for all those years. Thank you very much! It means a lot to me that you enjoy them! Hope you like this chapter just as much!_

**AllBlueChaser:**_ Yeah, sorry 'bout that… But I figured giving Sanji a normal face would be the easiest way to go! Haha, awesome. I'm glad I made up for myself. Hope you like this chapter! _

**Duchess192:**_ Thank you! Ugh. I'm glad someone else can share my pain. It really is a pain! I sure hope it goes away soon too! Hope you enjoy this chapter; thanks for your thoughts!_

**Kai-Chan94:**_ Thank you! Glad you liked it! :) Hope you like this one just as much! _

…

"I'm booroed…" Luffy whined, leaning off the railing of the Going Merry with his face set in a pout.

Zoro rolled his eyes, "Come _on, _Luffy. It's only been a few hours, and you're already bored? I don't see how you're going to last for four more days."

Luffy groaned and slid down to the deck as what Zoro said sunk in. It would take four more days for them to get to this Marine base thingy, and he was already bored out of his mind… Damn it. Why couldn't a sea king pop out of the water or something?

"Just stop," Zoro growled, "Your pathetic groaning is really getting old."

Luffy settled on lowering the volume of his whining instead of completely stopping it. Zoro grinded his teeth together, "Why couldn't the others have taken me with them?" he grumbled to himself.

Luffy flipped himself over onto his back and stared up at the blue sky glumly. He took to glancing at his First Mate, who was leaning against the mast, and noticed how the man was tapping both his foot and his fingers nervously. He looked quite anxious.

"You look pretty excited to get there too, Zoro!" The Captain shot back in the snidest way he could manage. (Which really wasn't all that snide at all)

Zoro glared at the boy. He had to really focus to get his limbs to stop moving. It was quite irritating that he couldn't train at all; it made him uneasy, "What the hell do you think, Luffy? Of course I am!" His gaze went straight again, "I want to get rid of this damned poison as soon as possible."

Luffy's expression sobered. He looked over Zoro again, reminding himself about the poison and causing a new small twinge of guilt to form in the pit of his stomach. This whole thing had to be driving Zoro crazy. Luffy knew better than anyone that his First Mate hated feeling weak and that he would try and keep up his strong face no matter what. Even with life-threatening poison in his veins, he tried his hardest to keep up a good poker face. Though…

He really was acting different. Luffy couldn't exactly put his finger on it, but something was definitely out of place. Maybe it was the fact that Zoro wasn't training, or maybe it was how tired he looked. Either way, the Captain didn't like it… He wanted the Zoro he knew back.

And he would fight his way through the very depths of Hell itself to do so.

Suddenly the sound of clapping hooves caught their attention. Chopper walked down the steps of the Merry steadily, making his way over to the pair on the deck. Zoro eyed him.

"They awake now?" He asked.

Chopper nodded, "Yup."

"'Bout time. They've been out for almost three hours now," He gestured loosely over to Luffy, "Thanks to this rubber monster."

"Hey! It's not my fault they were easy to beat up!" Luffy said in a not-so-convincing comeback.

"Anyway, it's alright though," Chopper continued, "Robin's doing a great job keeping them subdued."

"I bet she is…" Zoro mumbled. That woman was a particularly infamous pirate, as well as a specialist in assassination. He was pretty sure that the Marines they were holding hostage would have enough sense to keep their mouths shut.

"She and I both agreed that we should all probably take turns watching the Marines," The reindeer said, "Just so that one person isn't cooped up in there the whole time."

"That seems reasonable," Zoro shrugged.

A moment of silence.

"… I'm boored…"

"Maybe it wouldn't be such a good idea to let him keep watch on the Marines, Chopper."

"I agree…"

…...

Robin slowly turned the page of the book she was currently reading. Her face was composed as usual as she sat cross-legged on a folding chair a few feet away from the three confounded Marines who sat tied up in the corner.

"Isn't that Nico Robin?" Kappei whispered to the others.

"I haven't heard much about her for years," Akemi mumbled in somewhat awe, her brow furrowed.

"I didn't think she was still alive, honestly," Hiroaki muttered as quietly as the others.

"Yes, I'm Nico Robin," Robin stated calmly from her spot on the chair, not even looking up to face the Marines.

The Marines immediately flinched back a little in reflex, "Oh? So when did you decide to join up with the StrawHats?" Hiroaki asked, brow furrowed.

"I believe it's been close to a month or so now," She looked up at them with a smile, "Though that information should not matter to you all in the least right now. You're currently being held hostage by a group of notorious pirates; certainly not a position to be asking questions in."

The creepily calm tone her voice held made them all shudder involuntarily. Though they were trained not to show fear in front of pirates, no matter how infamous, this situation warranted some fear. Here they were being held hostage by the StrawHats and closely guarded by Nico Robin. Escape wasn't a very foreseeable option at the moment, and they could all see that.

"Your logic is sound," Akemi said with a grim smirk. She looked up at Robin with an intense brown-eyed stare, "Just let me ask this one question, if I may," Robin gave a half-shrug half-nod, "What exactly are you StrawHats trying to accomplish?"

Robin smiled again, "That's certainly a silly question. Why would I unveil our intentions to you?"

Kappei smirked; much like Akemi had done just shortly before, "Fair enough. But I hope you're aware that Red Fetter has a spotless record."

"He's right," Hiroaki joined in the conversation, "We've had no breakouts and no successful infiltrations," He smirked in victory, "So I hope your 'crew' knows what they've gotten themselves into. They'll be making appointments with the hangman soon."

"I'm afraid you're mistaken, Marine-san," Robin said as she closed her book.

The Marines looked surprised, "What do you mean?" Akemi asked.

"Well, you see, you said that Red Fetter has a spotless record."

"I did," Kappei said adamantly, frowning.

"I think what you meant to say…" Robin leaned back in her chair with a smile, "Was that it _had _a spotless record."

…...

"Are you done yet, Chopper?" Zoro asked with just a hint of irritation.

"Almost…" The Doctor replied as he pressed his stethoscope onto a different portion of Zoro's back, "Another deep breath, Zoro."

The swordsman did as he was told, and Chopper listened intently for any odd happenings. He sighed in relief as the examination was concluded and nothing out of the ordinary was happening. There was no hitch in Zoro's breathing, and his heart was beating at a passable rate.

For now…

Chopper looked worriedly up at the green-haired man as he stood up, stretched, and mumbled something about being stiff. Although Zoro didn't seem too bad off right now internally, the Doctor felt some unexplained trepidation about what was to come. Normally, he would be totally relieved and not concern himself too much with the future. The patient was healthy and doing well, and that was all that mattered. But in this case, the future was what he needed to fix.

Zoro may not have looked too bad _now, _but… Chopper didn't like the bags that were starting to form under his eyes.

….

Zoro stepped out of the Medical Bay with a yawn and another stretch. Usually Chopper's examinations were lengthy enough to make him want to gnaw his own arms off, but this one was even worse. The lack of training coupled with the having to sit down for a good part of an hour drove him mad. He was already getting jittery, and even more irritable than usual…

He briefly wondered if this was what having a cigarette withdrawal was like...

"_Speaking of nicotine…_" The swordsman thought, leaning on the upper rail of the Going Merry and staring off into the ocean, "_I wonder how the shitty cook and the others are doing… The fact that we haven't really heard anything from that Marine ship probably means that they haven't been found out yet…" _Zoro sighed and glanced down at the railing, where his fingers were unconsciously tapping on the wood below them.

His expression went from calm to irritated as he had to grab his fingers to stop them from moving. Thoughts of withdrawal came back to mind and suddenly Zoro felt a little tiny stitch of sympathy for Sanji. But only a little one.

"_They probably don't allow cigs on a Marine ship… At least, not for the recruits… Must be tough, curly-brow," _Zoro smirked, "_You're probably going to kick my ass for it later, huh?" _

"Oh! Zoro!"

"Hm?" Chopper's voice brought the swordsman out of his thoughts, "Yeah, Chopper? Something wrong?"

"I almost forgot to tell you… It's your turn to watch the Marines."

"Oh, okay," Zoro stood up all the way, "Thanks for letting me know."

"I'm so boooored…" Luffy's whines were getting louder. He pulled himself up to the railing where his Nakama were, "Zoroooo! Let's pay tag or something!"

"Nope, sorry, no can do. Gotta watch those Marines," Zoro had never ever been more thankful for the Marines in his life. In the time it took for him to walk to the cabin where the hostages were held, Chopper barely had time to blink.

"_That was the quickest response I've ever heard Zoro give about anything…" _Chopper thought with slight awe as the man scurried away. Luffy was left whining in defeat in his wake.

…

For the next few days, Zoro's toleration for the activity of watching the Marines went downhill very fast.

It started it out as nothing special, like he thought it would be. However, it soon escalated into something much more, and Zoro learned to hate going into that cabin. Each time he did, it reminded him of what happened on the first day…

The first day when Zoro went in to switch out with Robin, it was perfectly silent in the room for what seemed like an eternity. Zoro sat down on the chair that Robin had previously been occupying and leaned back in it, trying to get as comfortable as he could. He would be here for a few hours, so at least he could try and be relaxed about it.

However, the captives definitely weren't helping him relax. The three of them just sat there staring at him for an unbelievably long and awkward time. The swordsman decided just to ignore the hard stares at first, but there was something in their eyes that he didn't like… Something different about these looks they were giving him.

If anything, Zoro expected the three of them to look scared. He was a wanted pirate with a pretty large sum on his head, after all. It would be natural for them to be at least a little afraid. (He was actually a mite disappointed that they _didn't _look that fearful) If not afraid, he would understand if their stares look defiant; the classic Marine recruits who were trained to not show fear in front of any opponent. However, their expressions weren't like that either…

They looked almost… Disgusted. Zoro had to admit it somewhat threw him for a loop. He'd never met Marines who looked at him like he was a freak of nature before. Well, some of them probably thought that after watching him fight, but this was different… It was like they were holding a grudge against him for something.

His brow furrowed, and he noticed that the woman flinched back a little. She concealed it well, but even wounded, Zoro's perception was far above that of a 'normal' human being. He smirked.

"Scared?"

Akemi's nose scrunched up in an even more disgusted glare. "You wish, swordsman," The last word was spat at him with ferocity. However, Zoro looked quite unfazed.

"We have no reason to be afraid of a dying man, now do we?" Hiroaki smirked grimly at the man.

Zoro's smirk immediately died. His brow furrowed again, and he sat up in his chair, looking over them with ferocity ten times the size of Akemi's, "This _dying man _still has enough strength to grind your bones into powder, Marine. Keep in mind _you're_ being held hostage by _us; _one slip up and you're all done."

Kappei scoffed, although a bead of sweat was visible on his face. So this man _was _as terrifying as the stories said, "Really, now? I suppose you'll cut us up? I seem to recall hearing something said to you outside about not partaking in any strenuous activities. It would be a shame if you ended up killing yourself in the process of killing us, wouldn't it?"

Zoro's eyes flashed with anger for a moment. So they heard Chopper talking to him earlier… Before the examination, the reindeer had reminded him about not fighting or training again. Quickly, though, the swordsman started to chuckle. Kappei frowned.

"What's so funny?"

"Oh, nothing. I'm just thinking of what would happen if what you said actually took place," His smirk returned, "And I think it fair to warn you that my Captain tends to be very touchy when it comes to the safety of his crewmates," His expression turned darker, "If I died, none of you would make it off of this ship alive. I can promise you that."

The three Marines' scowls deepened. Zoro raised an eyebrow, "Don't believe me? We could test it if you really wanted, but that probably wouldn't be a good idea for anyone involved," He chuckled again, "Well, mostly you."

"_He's so arrogant… The bastard," _Hiroaki thought to himself, gritting his teeth together in disgust.

Akemi looked at Zoro like she knew some kind of secret about him, "You sure talk tough, don't you Roronoa? I hate to shoot you down, but if we died it wouldn't really matter. Your fate would still be sealed," A wicked smirk curved across her face. Zoro noted in the back of his head that she looked a lot like Nami when she was being this evil, "You should have, at the most, ten days left. Am I right?"

Zoro allowed his eyes to widen a fraction before regaining his composure. Akemi chuckled; a sharp fast sound, "Seven or eight if you indulge in any physical activity," She looked at the angry confusion in the swordsman's eyes and chuckled again, "I'm a sharpshooter, Roronoa. I know all about the poison."

Zoro crossed his arms and leaned back in his chair again, although this time he looked far less laid back, "You do, huh? Let me ask you a question then: do you keep the antidote in that Marine base of yours?" As much as he was certain about what his crew was doing, it would be nice to have some solid confirmation.

"We have no intention of giving you any information," Hiroaki quickly intercepted the conversation, "Threaten us however much you want; we're not divulging anything to you."

"Thought you might do that," Zoro sighed in irritation, "You Marines and your damn pride…"

"_Our_ pride...?" Kappei sniggered, "That's funny, coming from someone like you," Zoro raised his eyebrow again. The Marine continued, "I heard from the gunman that shot that poison that he wasn't aiming for you. It makes sense. After all, what good would firing a Seastone Needle at a non-devil fruit user do? It would just be a waste of material."

"… So what are you saying?" Zoro asked crossly.

"It was meant for your Captain, but you shoved him out of the way… The amount of pride that pirates like you gush out is just unbelievable!" He began to laugh again, "If you're this worried about the poison, then why did you so kindly 'protect' Straw Hat Luffy? Honestly. The idea of sacrificing yourself for a piece of trash like him is just ridiculous!"

Zoro saw red.

Kappei was soon pushing back against his comrades in apprehension as Wadou's blade sat gleaming a millimeter away from his throat. Zoro's own face was inches away from the other man's. He glared at Kappei with such hatred and anger that the very air in the room seemed to become stagnant.

"If you EVER," He whispered slowly with almost animalistic rage, "insult my Captain again, I will not _hesitate_ to cleave your damn head off."

Kappei swallowed hard, and his Adam's apple just scratched the menacing blade. Akemi and Hiroaki sat stone still, holding their breath in anticipation. Zoro's eyes narrowed and he continued speaking, "I do _not _regret pushing him out of the way, and I do _not _regret being poisoned. If it was for that man, I would do it a thousand times over."

None of them said another word to Zoro for four days.

….

As the days passed by, Chopper's trepidation crept up much faster than he would have liked. He was already paranoid enough about Zoro's condition, but now he felt like he could see the change happening right before his eyes. And it was far too sudden.

After only a few days, the light bags that were just barely noticeable on the swordsman turned deeper and darker, it looked like he hadn't gotten any sleep at all, his cheeks had begin to cave in just slightly, and his eyes looked almost glazed over.

The reindeer bit back a defeated whimper as Zoro sat down in the Medical Bay for another examination. He let out a long sigh. Day three… Only one more day to go until they reached Red Fetter… Chopper only hoped that Zoro's condition would at least maintain itself until they got there.

The Doctor frowned as he looked at the swordsman's face, "Zoro… Have you not been sleeping well lately?"

"… Not really…" The man answered tiredly. Any argument he thought about giving died in his mouth, as he really didn't have the energy to go through with one. He rubbed his eyes jadedly, "Believe me, I've been tired enough…"

Chopper's brow furrowed in worry as he reached into his blue backpack and pulled out the necessary tools for the examination. The first thing he did was shine a light into Zoro's eyes to try and allay his own fears about the swordsman's eyes.

"_Well, at least his pupils are still dilating… Though… They're not as responsive as I'd like them to be…" _The Doctor thought sourly, quickly moving on to other procedures. The same sort of thing occurred with almost every one of the tests. His condition was still passable, but it was nowhere near where it should be.

Chopper sighed as he finished up the examination. He turned to Zoro with his Doctor face on and began to give him the results of the tests, "Okay, Zoro… The good news is that the poison isn't in its final stages yet. The bad news is that your condition has definitely worsened; and quite suddenly too."

Zoro listened patiently as Chopper continued, "Your eyes are becoming less and less responsive. They still _are _responding to light, but not nearly as quickly as they should be. That, added with your fatigue and exhaustion, means that your reaction time will be slowed significantly. Because of that, fighting will be even more dangerous for you. I know I've told you this before, but you _cannot_ fight or train at all in the condition you're in."

Zoro grunted. He already knew that painfully well, actually. Being restricted from physical activity was really driving him crazy. Nevertheless, he didn't protest and listened to what else his Nakama had to say:

"As for your lack of sleep, that's very dangerous in the situation you're in. If somehow we run into enemies and you're attacked, well… Suffering from poison _and _exhaustion will only make it harder on your body. We don't want anything speeding up the poison.

"However, I do have some medication that you could take to help you sleep at night. I'll give some to you tonight. I know that we're only going to be out at sea for one more day, but- frankly –you need all of the energy you can get."

Zoro nodded, "That it?"

"That's all of the major problems I see…" Chopper mumbled.

"'Kay… Then I guess I'll be on my way," He stood up and stretched his arms out. He would never get used to sitting on that stool for so long.

As Zoro walked out of the Medical Bay, he allowed a troubled expression to settle on his face. So things really were happening faster than they thought… He couldn't really feel much of anything besides how tired he was, but he supposed that was because he hadn't trained or fought for three days… Damn.

"I could really use a drink…" He mumbled with a sigh, rubbing the back of his head with a hand and making for the galley.

"Oh no you don't!" Chopper came dashing out of the Medical Bay and skidded to a stop right in front of his patient. He had a determined look on his face. Zoro blinked in surprise for a moment, but then shook his head:

"What, Chopper? I'm really too tired for-"

"No alcohol!"

"What?" Zoro sputtered, exhaustion forgotten.

"You heard me!" He was adamant, "It's bad for your system! Your blood doesn't need anything else toxic in it!"

"Are you friggin' kidding me? First you tell me that I can't train, and _now _I can't even have booze?"

"No."

"But-"

"No!"

"If I just-"

"No means no!"

"Why?" On a normal day, Chopper would have giggled at how childish Zoro sounded when he said that.

"Doctor's orders!"

"… Fine…" Zoro jutted out his lower lip in a pout and stormed off past Chopper and down the stairs of the Merry.

He leaned over one of the railings glumly, scowling out into the ocean with enough fire in his eyes to burn the whole thing up. Chopper sighed and shook his head as he began to walk back to the Medical Bay. The man was always so darned stubborn about his treatments. Would it ever kill him to cooperate?

"Hey Chopper?"

Just as he sat down at his desk to do some more reading on seastone, his Captain's characteristic voice made him turn to the side, "Uh, yes Luffy?"

"I think Zoro's in a bad mood…" The rubber boy had his mouth set in a firm line. The dark imprint of a familiar-shaped boot covered his face.

"Uh…" A fat drop of sweat fell down the reindeer's head, "N-No kidding..?"

"I only asked him if he wanted to play!" Luffy pouted, and- Chopper had to admit –he did it much better than Zoro. More practice did that, he bet, "He just got mad and kicked me away… He's just like Sanji…" The boy added under his breath.

"Wait, he kicked you?" Chopper cried out in fright suddenly.

Luffy seemed surprised and blinked once or twice before responding, "Yeah."

"Idiot!" Chopper swiftly transformed into Heavy Point and punched Luffy into the adjacent wall.

Luffy sank to the floor with a loud squeak before flipping back up to his feet. He looked at the Doctor fearfully, "What the hell, Chopper! It's not like I _made _him!"

"Luffy, you moron! He can't do _anything_ physical! One wrong move and the poison could be sped up!" Though he was yelling out of anger, fear was obviously present in his voice.

"Huh? You mean…" Luffy glanced out the door at his First Mate, who was still seething by the railing. His eyes narrowed in concern as he saw the way the man's chest moved with slow deep breaths that one normally wouldn't have to take after just kicking someone in the face. A bead of sweat worked its way down his tan face.

Luffy's expression remained somber as he turned back to Chopper, "I'm sorry Chopper. I didn't even think about that…"

Chopper sighed and turned back into Brain Point. It was a sincere apology. To be expected from Luffy, "I'm really not the one you should be apologizing to, Luffy," He made sure everything necessary was in his blue bag before picking it up and beginning to walk out the door, "I have to go and check up on him now. Make sure that he's doing alright."

"… Hey Chopper?"

"Yes?" The reindeer turned around to face his Captain, who still looked quite serious. However, a sharp glimmer of worry shown in his dark eyes.

"Zoro… How _is _he?" Chopper looked confused so Luffy continued, "Two days ago he was really twitchy all the time because he couldn't train. It's been three days total and he still hasn't trained at all, but… Now he's totally stopped twitching. I can tell he's still irritated, but he doesn't move at all. He just… Sits or stands there by the mast. _Like he's already giving up…" _

Chopper's eyes widened slightly. Was this really Luffy talking? He was usually such a clueless goofball... Though… It made sense. Luffy always had this very odd power of being able to tell how people were feeling based on their little habits; especially his Nakama. He could read them very easily, whether he showed it or not.

Chopper wondered if Luffy could read Zoro the best, since he was the First Mate…

"Well, he… He's definitely not getting any better," The reindeer started semi-nervously, "His reaction time to things has slowed and he's battling a bout of exhaustion, but…" He looked up at Luffy desperately, "But there's still hope for him!"

Luffy suddenly smirked determinedly, "Yosh! Of course there is! We're definitely going to save Zoro."

Chopper smiled and nodded, "Definitely," He continued to walk outside down towards where Zoro was.

Luffy stood in the Medical Bay for a moment, mulling over what Chopper just told him. So Zoro _was _getting worse… His brow lifted in worry as he tried thinking of options. He hated that he couldn't do anything for his Nakama and wished that there was _something_ he was able to do to make him feel better. If he could, Luffy would take all of Zoro's pain away from him in a heartbeat. He shook his head and walked outside the Medical Bay, hoping that his swordsman hadn't lost hope yet.

"Stand still!"

"Hell no! I see what you've got in there! Besides, you've already examined me today!"

"I know that you kicked Luffy! That counts as physical activity, you stubborn idiot! You're not getting out of this!"

"It was just a kick! No use getting all- hey! Get that thing away from me!"

"It's just a _needle, _Zoro! Besides, I'm not even going to use it on you!"

"So then get it the hell away from me!"

"Just hold STILL, damn it!"

Luffy suddenly burst out into a fit of laughter, holding his stomach with his hands.

"It sure seems like Swordsman-san is feeling lively, doesn't it?" Robin's voice came from Luffy's left. She closed the door to the cabin behind her and smiled at the scene down on the deck.

"Yeah, it does," Luffy agreed through laughs. As Chopper and Zoro continued to bicker over the examination, the bad news that had presented itself earlier seemed to disappear entirely. Things seemed like the way they used to be, and it was a welcome change.

And Luffy knew that Zoro hadn't given up.

…...

Robin flipped a page of the book she was reading nonchalantly and chanced a look up at the horizon. The sun was already starting to set… Time sure went by fast when you were reading a good book. Truthfully, she hadn't expected a book about seastone to be so gripping, but it was a nice surprise. She was learning a lot of new things.

She looked over to the mast momentarily and giggled at the sight that met her. Luffy and Zoro had both fallen asleep and somehow, even though they were on different sides, Luffy had managed to sprawl himself all over the swordsman. He would be quite angry when he woke up.

Her eyes took on a glint of sadness. They were getting closer and closer… It was already day four; they would be reaching their goal any time now. However, she couldn't help but notice how much weaker Zoro had seemed to have gotten. The abruptness of the change surprised her, quite frankly. She could tell it didn't sit well with their Doctor either. From what she had been reading, also, this poison was… Quite lethal. To an extent that Chopper may not have even known.

The Seastone Poison was designed to become very fatal very quickly. In fact, based on the material she read, Robin ascertained that the very worst could happen so suddenly, none of them would know what to do.

Zoro's body was liable to give out on him even before his time was up.

"Hm?" Robin looked back to the horizon suddenly as she caught something in her peripheral vision. Her eyes widened a little in surprise and she immediately walked over to where her Captain and First Mate were sleeping.

Zoro, being ever-alert, opened one eye when he heard her coming. His expression grew irritated when he saw that Luffy- sleeping in a spread out mess as usual -had shoved an arm and a leg right in his face. Quickly pushing the rubbery limbs off of him, he addressed Robin with both eyes open:

"Something wrong?"

She shook her head, "Look over there, Swordsman-san," Robin pointed out to the spot she had been looking at earlier.

"Hm?" He stood up all the way and scrutinized the area where Robin had pointed.

Luffy stood up groggily, jogged awake by Zoro's shove. He planted his straw hat back on his head, "Wha' happa'?" He asked sleepily.

Zoro's gaze narrowed, "Luffy, look over there."

"What's over there?" The Captain rubbed his eyes and looked towards the spot that both of his Nakama were looking at, "Whoa…"

Just in front of the setting sun, a large oddly shaped figure seemed to be coming closer and closer. And the closer it got to them, the less it looked like a figure and the more it looked like an island. An island with an usually familiar cylindrical shape.

"Looks like we made it," Robin smiled.

Luffy grinned a devilish grin that took up his entire face, "We're here!" He punched into his palm, "You ready to get rid of that poison, Zoro?"

Zoro smirked, "I've been ready for four days."

**Author's Note:**

**It has officially been two whole months since I last updated. Wow. Fail. -.-' I am SO sorry! I know I'm just playing like a broken record here, but I really have been extremely busy. **

**And, if I don't get over this constant Writer's Block soon, I think I'm going to go crazy. My problem is that I'm always planning for what'll happen in the future and never for what's happening now… Quite a pickle, eh? **

**As a result, I was afraid that this chapter would seem really random… I hope that you all still liked it nonetheless! It was longer than the previous one too. I wanted to show how Zoro was going downhill, and it was really hard to just focus on that throughout the chapter without feeling redundant, so… Yeah. :P **

"… _I'm boored…" _

**Luffy would be both fun and horrible to go on long trips with. XP**

_The creepily calm tone her voice held made them all shudder involuntarily._

**We all learned in Thriller Bark how scary Robin can be when she wants to. O.o Poor Brooke…**

_He briefly wondered if this was what having a cigarette withdrawal was like..._

**Sanji could tell you all about it, Zoro! XD**

_Thoughts of withdrawal came back to mind and suddenly Zoro felt a little tiny stitch of sympathy for Sanji. But only a little one._

**Hey, at least it'll give those two something to actually talk about like civil people. **

_(He was actually a mite disappointed that they _didn't_look that fearful)_

**Come on. We all know that Zoro likes to instill fear into others. That's part of what makes him so awesome. XD He's probably the most evil good guy in One Piece. **

_He glared at Kappei with such hatred and anger that the very air in the room seemed to become stagnant._

**I'm telling ya, Zoro has Haki! I mean, it makes sense, doesn't it? **

"_You Marines and your damn pride…" _

**I laughed as I was typing this, just because the irony is so ridiculous. XP Zoro's the last person who should be talking about pride.**

_If it was for that man, I would do it a thousand times over."_

**We just got finished reading "The Kite Runner" in English, so I didn't have much trouble thinking of something prideful for Zoro to say about Luffy. :D "For you a thousand times over." I dunno; it just seems like something he'd say. (By the way, the ending of that book made me very mad. There was no closure!) **

"_However, I do have some medication that you could take to help you sleep at night._

**Chapter 12: Zoro becomes addicted to Tylenol PM. **

"_You heard me!" He was adamant, "It's bad for your system! Your blood doesn't need anything else toxic in it!" _

**In a review that Taryn Steambattle left on the last chapter, the topic of Chopper getting on Zoro's case for drinking came up. I thought it was a great idea, and- honestly –I hadn't even thought about it before! So, I decided to incorporate it into this chapter. Thank you Taryn Steambattle! :]**

_The dark imprint of a familiar-shaped boot covered his face. _

**I find it hilarious that, even though Luffy's the Captain of the StrawHat Pirates, he's the one who gets beat up the most. XD**

_He's just like Sanji…"_

**Ooh, I'm sure Zoro would LOVE to hear that! **

"_Idiot!" Chopper swiftly transformed into Heavy Point and punched Luffy into the adjacent wall._

**Please refer to two comments above. :D**

_If he could, Luffy would take all of Zoro's pain away from him in a heartbeat._

**Heh heh… Yeah… Foreshadowing! **

"_It's just a __needle, __Zoro! Besides, I'm not even going to use it on you!"_

**I am just in love with the idea that Zoro doesn't like needles. XP I can't help it. It's too funny! **

**Anyway, I hope you all enjoyed this chapter! I'll try my hardest to be better about getting updates put up! Review and leave me your thoughts! I love hearing them! :) **


	11. Mistake

**Reader Reviews – Chapter 10/Recent**

**KiaCoral: **_Thanks for reviewing multiple times; that always makes me feel happy! ^0^ I'm really excited that you've liked it so far! Haha, I try and make my character interactions believable, so I'm glad they were enjoyable! _

**TheSilverCircle:** _Thanks a ton! :D I'm really glad to hear you say that! So very sorry for the horrendously late update, but I hope you can forgive me and keep reading! My readers mean a lot to me! _

**Red teh Dragon: **_Awesome! ^^ Makes me feel good to know you like this story enough to not skip stuff! Thank you muchly… Ugh. I don't know if the horrid Block will EVER be truly gone… And thank you for reviewing multiple times! :D I appreciate it! Hope you enjoy this segment too! _

**TARIGARMA12: **_Aww, sorry to disappoint ya. XP But I'm really glad you like it! Heck no! I may take a while to update, but I can safely say this is not a dead fic! Hope you enjoy reading this chapter too!_

**helloitme (ann.): **_Oh jeez, then I'm gonna be getting barraged by these messages. XD_

**kallakkala: **_Heey, don't I know you from a review response earlier? (XD) Woohoo! I have a fan! That's very exciting! Thank you very much for your compliment; means a lot! _

**Silverchild of the winds: **_Thanks! Glad you thought it was well-depicted! I always worry about how I do with that. Hope you like this chapter as well! :3_

**Velkyn Karma: **_Wow, thanks for the long review! I'm really glad that you like the whole idea of my story. Well, if you don't like yaoi, then this is definitely a story for you. I'm not a fan of it, myself. Nakamaship, pure and simple. A time bomb poison does have quite a lot of possibilities! (Which is why I like it XP) Yeah, you know, I actually thought about that a lot. But, the way I have it written, Chopper didn't notice any major changes in Zoro's health, and knew he wouldn't be exerting himself too hard while on the ship. Plus, I think Zoro wouldn't care too much to be locked up in the Med. Ward, no matter what Chopper said. And yes indeedy, the poison IS getting worse. Thanks! I'm glad you thought the character interactions worked well! Oh, alright! That makes a lot of sense, actually… Thank you for the constructive criticism! :D Thanks again! Loved your long review! Hope you keep reading!_

**ArabianNinja: **_Thanks a lot! Yeah! Ain't NO one insulting Luffy when Zoro's 'round! XD Haha, thanks. Luffy's a goof even in serious situations, and I wanted to show that. You kidding? That sentence makes perfect sense! (At least to me it does!) Thanks for your review again; hope you enjoy this installment!_

**Sora Tayuya: **_Yaay~! ^^ I'm happy you liked it, Sora-chan! Yeah, poor Zoro's got it purty darn bad. Ah, that's okay! No need to be self-conscience! Wow… O.o School was finishing up the last time I posted… That seems like a VERY long time ago. Dang. I need to be quicker! Hope you like this one! Your thoughts always make me smile! Thanks for always taking the time to leave such upbeat reviews! _

**DP-shrine-in-closet-girl: **_First of all, I LOVE long reviews. And this one really made my day! Thank you so much for the compliments! I'm glad you think I nailed Luffy! Sometimes he's a little hard to write for, so it's good to hear from a reader that what I have works. Yeah! Sanji said that during his fight with Wanze! (The ramen kenpo guy; it was on the train that was going to Enies Lobby) He said he didn't like to use knives for fighting, only for cooking. Hmm… I don't recall ever hearing him say anything about swords though… But thanks anyway! I knew right from the get go that I wanted him to have a sword. It would just be too ironic! ^^ But glad you think him actually being pretty good with the sword was fitting. I decided to put this story in the 'Pre Franky and Brook' timeframe only because it would mean extra bodies if I didn't. XP And I'm not quite sure I'd know what to do with Franky and Brook! (They definitely couldn't blend in inside a Marine base. XD) Oh goodness, never feel bad for leaving long reviews! I love 'em! And I'm very flattered at all of the wonderful compliments you've given me! Thank you so much! I hope you keep on reading!_

**Happy Life: **_Oh, how I wish I could update in two hours…. XD That'd be awesome. Thanks! Yeah, I was hoping to make the Marines seem pretty unlikeable. ;) Hahaha, that's okay! So hooray! Now you're officially on my 'Reader Review' page! :D Hope you like this chapter!_

**cb (ann.): **_That's right, Zoro! XD I don't think Chopper would even LET him disobey the orders at this point. Hope you enjoy this chapter too!_

**Tony WildRiver: **_I live! ^0^ It's very exciting news ideed! Ah, s'okay! None of us are_ that _prompt with our updates! Thanks a bunch! Glad you liked the pan back to the Merry! Hope you're still excited to read this chapter! :3_

**PleasantlyStrange: **_Hahaha, first of all! I like your username! XD It makes me smile! Thanks! ^^ Glad you liked the argument! I had a lot of fun writing it! Oh jeez. In that case I hope you got some sleep… I've done a few all-nighters myself, and they aren't easy! Sadly, in my case, when I pull an all-nighter, I can't get to sleep until the night after that! -.-' But thanks! Glad you liked it! I hope you'll like this chapter too!_

**ZeldaAddict42: **_Ahh, Zelda-chan… I do love reading your reviews. I know; totally my intention there! I can't help it. Angsty Zoro (or Sanji!) is pretty much my favorite thing in the world to write. I get really into it. XP And trust me, it'll get sadder! *laughs evilly* Hehe… Glad you liked that bit. Zoro dishing out justice to Marines just seemed right. Glad you caught that! No one else really commented on the pride thing. But I'm happy you of all people got it! :D Thanks! I was kind of nervous bringing out Luffy's more serious side, just because I thought some people might think he was being TOO serious. I'm happy you didn't think so! Of course Chopper wouldn't lie! Silly Zelda-chan! *shifty eyes* Yeah, I'm going to have her inform Chopper about it. Don't you worry! Thank you muchly again! I always appreciate your thoughts very much! _

**-Arashi-Storm-Guardian: **_Yay! I'm glad you laughed! ^^ Even though they're going through some tough times, the StrawHats remain silly! :P I really hope you like this update! _

**Pom Rania: **_I guess we'll have to see how poor Zoro-kun fares… If he makes it or not… *evil grin* But a hug is definitely visible in the future, so I'll dedicate whatever Zoro-hug that happens to you! ^0^_

**Taryn Steambattle: **_Thankies! Glad you think Zoro taking the needle was in character! Haha, yes they will! Zoro's pretty much already made them eat their words anyway… XD He definitely did not act like a dying man. No problem at all! It was a really good idea that I hadn't thought of! :D _

**PaperBagGhost: **_Aww, thank you! Glad it was worth it! I always feel so guilty about making you guys wait so ridiculously long… . Sorry about the sadness! Sadly (no pun intended) it's my forte, so there's definitely going to be more in the future! I this chapter was worth the wait as well!_

**verunder: **_Thanks a bunch! Oh, I'm happy you made that comparison! Lets me know that I have ol' Zoro in somewhat good character! :3 Hope you keep reading, and enjoy this chapter!_

**umino-gaara: **_Gaah, I'm sorry for that…. -.-' I always take my sweet time when updating because of the horrid Writer's Block… Well, I still hope you'll read this chapter and like it! I'll try and be better about updating sooner! _

…...

Sanji shuddered awake with a gasp.

Sweat trickled down his cheek as the cook's eyes darted frantically around the room. The sound of light snoring coming from all the other recruits and the rows of bunks were somehow reassuring to him, and he exhaled quietly, closing and opening his eyes again.

"_Damn it… A nightmare?" _Sanji rolled to his side, "_Che… Haven't had one of those in… Ages…" _His gaze narrowed at a particularly interesting plank on the floor as images of what he had just seen floated back into his mind.

_He was sinking…_

_Somehow Sanji had ended up in the ocean, and he was gazing down into the darkness below him questioningly, almost as if he was looking for something. Or someone. Light shined in from the sunlight above, but still didn't allow the cook much sight. Finally his eye caught something of color down in the darkness._

_Green. _

_Zoro. He was sinking. _

_Immediately alarmed, Sanji began to swim down as fast as he could, intent on bringing his crewmate back up to the surface with him. As he got closer and closer, however, Sanji noticed several pairs of what almost looked like long black arms wrapping themselves around Zoro. The swordsman was struggling fiercely, trying to break free of the arms' hold, but nothing seemed to be working. _

_Sanji began to swim faster, noticing the struggle, his gaze narrowing on his target. Suddenly, Zoro's head lifted up so that his face could be seen, and Sanji almost completely froze where he was. _

_The swordsman looked scared. He looked genuinely afraid. And that horrified Sanji. _

_Zoro stretched his arm out as far as it would go, the black arms already beginning to weave around it. The look of desperation in his face made the cook's stomach twist. Sanji kicked his legs as fast as he could, reaching his own arm out to grab Zoro's hand. However, something felt wrong to him…_

_No matter how hard he kicked his legs or no matter how far his arm and fingers stretched out, he wasn't getting any closer to Zoro. The green-haired man just kept on being pulled farther and farther away. And the farther away Zoro was dragged, the more desperate his face became. _

_Suddenly the fact that he was underwater was painfully clear to Sanji. His lungs started to burn as he felt himself loosing air that he didn't have. He closed his eyes in pain and then when he opened them again… Zoro was gone. _

_And Sanji couldn't hold his breath anymore. _

The cook frowned. He didn't have many nightmares. In fact, he hadn't had one since he was working on the Baratie… The day before Don Krieg and his pirate fleet came and threatened to kill everyone. A queasy feeling knotted its way into the man's intestines. His nightmares were few and far between, and they usually held some kind of deeper meaning. Some kind of sign for the near future.

… _several pairs of what looked like long black arms wrapping themselves around Zoro._

_The swordsman looked scared. He looked genuinely afraid…_

… _he wasn't getting any closer to Zoro._

_Zoro was gone._

Sanji clenched his teeth and let some air out in a hiss. He rolled over to his stomach, burying his face in his pillow. He didn't know if it was the nightmare, or the fact that he hadn't had a single cigarette in three days that made him feel like he was going to puke.

The cook wiped his sweaty palms on the sheets of his bed before closing his eyes and trying to get the world to slow down. Tomorrow they would arrive at Red Fetter…

He only hoped that there was a swordsman to save by the time they got there.

…

"Hello Kappei-kun," Nami greeted cordially as Usopp sat down across from her, returning her hello with a polite nod of his head.

"Okamura-san," He replied, still using his lower 'Marine voice', as he'd grown to call it. He set his tray down in front of him softly, getting situated and beginning to poke at the food with his fork.

Nami took a quick glance around, "… No Hiroaki-kun?"

Usopp stopped toying around with his food, "Nope… I haven't seen him all day."

Nami frowned, looking down at her tray. She didn't like this. Something about the way Sanji had been acting for the past few days worried her. It was almost like he was closing himself off from them. Even here in the mess hall- which they discovered was another very convenient place to talk –he seemed withdrawn. Like he didn't want his own nakama to see him…

The clattering of a tray next to Usopp made the both of them snap out of their subdued thoughts.

"Hiroaki-kun!" Nami said in a shocked tone, trying to keep her voice down as much as she possibly could.

"There you are! God, we've been worried about you!" Usopp whispered to the man now sitting next to him, talking in more of his normal voice.

"Sorry…" Sanji mumbled. He pinched the bridge of his nose with two fingers.

Nami and Usopp shared apprehensive glances before turning their attention to the blond Marine in disguise that didn't look like he was in too great of shape. Nami was the first to speak up:

"Hiroaki-kun… Is something bothering you?" She ventured, "You've been pretty distant for the past couple days. We've been worried about you," Usopp nodded in affirmation.

"No, it's nothing. Sorry to worry you, Akemi-san…" They couldn't help but notice the slight irritated edge to Sanji's voice as he spoke and were about to pry further, when he lifted his head up to face them.

Usopp's eyes bulged almost out of his head, and Nami's brow furrowed with worry. Her voice lowered to a mere whisper:

"Oh my God… You look horrible…"

"What happened to you?"

The cook's eyes were both incredibly sunk in and bloodshot, and his face was lined with a fine layer of sweat. And Nami and Usopp both noticed how his hands seemed to shake on the table.

Sanji let out a frustrated breath of air, "I told you, it's nothing..." He averted their worried gazes as much as he could.

"That's _not_ nothing!" Nami insisted, still keeping her voice down, "Have you seen yourself?"

Sanji sighed again, rubbing at his eyes tiredly. His defenses were crumbling fast. Being stubborn was way too hard in the condition he was in. He gave a weak chuckle, "I probably look like shit, huh?" He muttered. Usopp and Nami didn't look like they were too sure how to answer that question, "Well… That's definitely how I feel…"

"What happened to you?" Usopp repeated, this time more succinctly.

"Just going through a slight withdrawal, nothing much…" The cook muttered, saying the 'w' word as quietly as he could.

It took Nami a beat to realize what he was talking about, but when she did, worry flashed through her eyes. She didn't even think about that… "Oh jeez…. Hiroaki-kun, I'm sorry."

Usopp frowned, "Yeah… How long's it been?"

"Three days," Sanji replied tiredly. He was definitely counting.

Nami and Usopp looked at each other awkwardly, having a short but silent conversation about how to go about helping Sanji. Finally Usopp gave a shrug and Nami sighed. Sadly, in situations like these there wasn't much they _could _do for their friend. Neither of them had ever dealt with something like this before, and they certainly didn't know how to remedy Sanji's pain.

"_I kinda wish we brought Chopper along now…" _Usopp thought anxiously, "_'Cuz MAN, does he look like hell." _

"I know what you're thinking," Sanji closed his eyes shortly. He still sounded irritated, "Just don't worry about it. I told you it's nothing. I can get over it."

"Not to be a pessimist, but how will you do that?" Usopp asked, "It seems like a pretty hard thing to overcome easily."

"… Done it before…" Sanji mumbled, almost inaudibly.

Nami looked surprised, "You mean you've… Been through a withdrawal before?"

The cook tapped his fingers on the table agitatedly. The food on his tray hadn't even been touched, "Yeah," He admitted hesitantly. It wasn't something he was really comfortable sharing openly. He didn't want them to worry about him more.

"When?" Nami asked. When she saw the almost pained look on Sanji's face, she quickly waved a hand in dismissal, "Not to pry or anything! You don't have to tell us if you don't want to."

"No, it's fine…" The cook sighed. His defenses were really at an all time low anyway, so he figured there was no use trying to fight it. He would just try and be as vague as possible, "It was on the Baratie. I think I was sixteen."

"So… What happened?" Usopp asked.

"I tried to quit smoking."

…...

"Commander! Commander Gorgon, sir!"

"What is it, Corporal?" Gorgon looked up from the paperwork that he had been gazing down at, a not too pleased expression covering his face.

The corporal saluted as he entered the dimly lit room, "Red Fetter is in sight, sir."

"… Good…" Gorgon nodded slowly, his eyes narrowing in discomfort.

"Is… Something wrong, sir?" The corporal asked, eying his commanding officer curiously. Shouldn't that news have made him happier?

"Corporal…"

"Yes, sir?"

"Have you noticed that we haven't encountered the StrawHat pirates once since the attacking four days ago?"

"Yes sir, I have. It's certainly a relief, isn't it? If the whole crew attacked, who knows how many more of the crew could've been injured or killed? After all, the Pirate Hunter Roronoa Zoro is also a part of their crew. And his bounty isn't that much smaller than StrawHat's!"

Gorgon's eyes slightly twitched at the mention of Zoro's name, "Yes… That would've been unfortunate…"

"Though, I have to admit… It is quite odd that they haven't even shown up once."

"… You're dismissed, Corporal. Go alert the other recruits."

The corporal saluted, "Right away, sir!"

As soon as the door slammed behind the lesser Marine, Gorgon's eyes took on a dark glint. Yes, it was quite odd that the StrawHats hadn't even shown up once for the past few days.

_Quite _odd…

…...

"There it is…" Luffy said in anticipation, gripping the railing of the Going Merry eagerly. Red Fetter grew steadily closer and closer.

Zoro unconsciously gripped Wadou's hilt, _"Finally…" _He thought anxiously, "_I can finally get rid of this damned poison."_

"Captain-san," Robin piped up from behind. Luffy looked back curiously, "It would be wise for us to search for a pace to hide the ship before we're spotted. It would be a pretty pointless journey if we were all caught."

"Oh yeah…" Luffy scratched his head, "Forgot about that…"

"_Of course he did," _Zoro thought wearily. A sudden familiar lurch in his stomach made the swordsman wince, _"Oh crap, not another-" _He put a hand up to his mouth just seconds before a horrible coughing fit rattled his insides. The two crewmates on deck immediately went to him.

"Zoro?" Luffy raised his voice in worry.

"I'll go get Doctor-san," Robin threw over her shoulder as she ran up the Merry's stairs.

"Zoro, just hang on. Robin's going to get Chopper," Luffy offered, putting a hand on his First Mate's shoulder in an attempt to steady the man like he had seen Chopper do days before. He frowned deeply. The boy was no Doctor, but even he could tell that Zoro was seriously getting worse. In just one day, his face had become gaunt and his entire body looked like it was losing muscle mass. In addition to that, he was two shades paler than normal. And right now he was even whiter…

Zoro managed to get a weak nod in between all the hacking and coughing so that his Captain could be sure he was heard. Suddenly the swordsman felt a warm coppery substance shoot up his throat with every cough and his brain started to run around in frustrated circles.

"_Oh no…" _He thought, the worst possible thing popping up in his mind. He was getting worse. A lot worse.

The sound of hurried hooves soon clattered to the deck and over to Luffy and Zoro. Luffy quickly stepped back and allowed Chopper to get to his patient. The reindeer morphed into Heavy Point and put his hands on Zoro's shoulders like he had done before.

He bit his lip. Chopper wished there was some way he could actually alleviate his friend's terrible coughing_, _but there really was nothing he could do. All the options that ran through his head couldn't stop something this severe.

Thankfully, Zoro's coughs started to slow down to nothing shortly after the Doctor arrived. However, when he was hesitant to take his hand down from his mouth, Chopper's stomach did a somersault.

"Zoro…?" He questioned quietly.

Zoro sighed silently in defeat. There was no way of hiding his fears from Chopper… Or from himself. He slowly took his hand down from his mouth and confirmed his silent trepidation. Chopper swallowed hard. Zoro swore.

Blood.

It covered Zoro's hand. Lined his mouth. Made Chopper bite his lip so hard you would think red liquid would start coming out of him too.

Luffy looked confused and concerned, "What… What does that mean?"

Chopper looked absolutely defeated for a moment before he gently nudged Zoro, "… Zoro? Come on; I need to… Get rid of that blood for you… And do one last check-up before we arrive at the base."

Zoro nodded somewhat reluctantly, knowing that this was necessary if he were to actually survive this whole ordeal. Plus, much to his disdain, he felt his obstinate ways slowly disintegrating. The swordsman simply didn't have the energy to argue with the young Doctor.

Meanwhile, Luffy stood solemn-faced, frustrated with the lack of an answer to his question. He watched as Zoro and Chopper walked hurriedly up to the Medical Bay, leaving the Captain alone on the deck.

And for some reason, he did feel quite lonely…

Luffy looked back to the horizon again, watching as Red Fetter grew closer and closer. His brow furrowed. An odd anger welled up inside of his chest as he thought of all the violent attacks that Zoro had been having for the past few days. All of the pain he'd try to hide. And how that pain seemed to have gotten worse and worse…. And now this blood…

Though the straw hat-clad boy never got a verbal answer to his question, he knew that the fact Zoro was coughing up blood was not good. Chopper's strained body language was enough to confirm that.

Luffy's anger about the whole situated had escalated with every slip downward his First Mate made. He hadn't had much to take it out on, but seeing the Marine Base that held the poison responsible for his Nakama'suffering…

That was enough to make his blood boil in his veins.

Zoro came back outside in a few minutes, leaning on the railing next to his Captain. He had a perplexed look about him. Luffy blinked, "Fast."

The swordsman grunted, "I wiped the blood up myself… And Chopper's examination was shorter than usual today."

"Why?"

"Because things are moving along fast. He just wanted a blood sample; said it'd be able to tell him a lot."

"Oh."

"It's been almost seven whole days, Luffy…" The Captain couldn't help but notice how Zoro's voice had taken on a hoarse edge. He sounded… Tired, "Chopper says the poison's progressed faster than he expected. I…" The swordsman sighed and clenched his fists. He looked down at his pale hands, "I don't want to lose to this Luffy. I _can't _lose to this," At the lack of response, Zoro scoffed, "Dunno why I'm spilling my guts out like this though. Not like I'm telling you anything you don't already know."

"Zoro."

His brow furrowed. Luffy's voice was extremely stern. A tone he usually only reserved for when he was about to threaten an enemy.

"I hate them, Zoro."

"Hm?" The swordsman's brow raised. That wasn't exactly what he expected.

Luffy looked out into the sea, "I hate them for what they've done to you. All of the suffering they've made you go through."

Zoro was shocked, to say the least. He knew Luffy felt that way, but the boy was never one for upright telling someone something like that, "Luffy, I-"

"I know what you're really going through, Zoro. I can see it. You try to hide it; you're good at that. But I can see it. The lack of fire in your eyes, how you shudder when you take in a deep breath, how you can't eat an actual meal without slipping off to the bathroom afterwards to throw it back up, the way you can't sleep at night even when Chopper gives you medication, how you pace around on the deck for hours at a time, trying to hold back horrible coughs so you won't wake anyone up," Luffy looked at his First Mate with a liable look, "Earlier… That wasn't the first time you've coughed up blood, was it Zoro?"

Zoro looked away ashamedly, clenching his hands together tighter. The whole reason he hid all of those things was so his Captain and crewmates _wouldn't _worry about him. But obviously it hadn't worked too well. Luffy… Knew everything. He was always oddly observant in his own way… Zoro cursed to himself. Should have taken that into account.

Luffy turned back to the sea, "I hate those people for causing this to happen to you… But I also hate that you've been trying to hide your pain from us. It makes me angry that this had to happen to you in the first place, but it makes me even angrier to know that you're trying to hide from your Nakama."

For some reason, those words made Zoro feel like a knife had just taken a stab at his heart.

"We want to help you, Zoro. Me, Chopper, Robin, Sanji, Nami, and Usopp. All of us. But we can't do that if you won't let us."

Another stab at the swordsman's heart. He fiddled around nervously with his hands. Suddenly there was a warm hand on his shoulder, and he looked up to see Luffy grinning victoriously.

"You _won't _lose to this thing, Zoro. You're going to win, just like you always do. And we're going to be helping you all the way!"

A slow smile spread across Zoro's face, and he suddenly looked even more tired than he had been. Like he'd given up trying to hide it, "… Thanks, Captain."

A small tan-colored ear disappeared from the Merry's deck in a dance of flowers.

…...

Robin smiled contentedly as she went back to reading her book. She was glad the boys had settled everything. She had been wondering when Luffy was going to confront Zoro about that…

A shuffle of feet brought her attention back to where she was and the three Marine soldiers sitting tied up in front of her, "Oh, that's right…" She mumbled. Robin set the book down, "It seems that we're getting rather close to Red Fetter."

"Yes, we've heard…" Kappei responded rather snappishly.

"Why would you remind us of that, woman?" Akemi growled, "You gonna let us go?" She added sarcastically, with a touch of fake desperation.

Robin giggled, "Oh, heavens no," She crossed her arms in an x across her chest, "Tres Fleur," The Marines watched in a mix of disgust and horror as three hands grew out of their shoulders. They could only begin to comprehend what was happening as the hands struck down hard on their necks and sent them all to the ground, unconscious. Robin uncrossed her arms, picked up her books, and stood up, "The term is hostages, if I remember correctly."

…...

Chopper let out a sigh of despair and put his head on his hooves.

As he thought, by examining Zoro's blood, he found out the man was much sicker than the Doctor had thought… But how was this going to work? They needed to hurry and find a place to hide out…

"Doctor-san? May I come in?" Robin's smooth voice was heard outside the door.

"Oh, y-yes. Come in," Chopper had to shake himself out of his reverie.

Robin walked in softly, closing the door behind her, "There's something I need to talk to you about."

Chopper was somewhat surprised by her forwardness, "… Oh?"

She nodded, holding up the book she'd been holding, "It's about something I learned about the Seastone poison."

The reindeer's heart skipped a few beats, "W-What'd you find out?"

…...

"Attention all hands! Attention all hands!" The call rang out loud and clear across the Mess Hall of Flagship 12.

Sanji, Nami, and Usopp looked up in interest to see the resident Corporal standing atop a balcony that overlooked the dining area; megaphone in his hands, "We are now in proximity of Red Fetter! Estimated arrival in half an hour or less! All hands prepare for docking!"

The small StrawHat group looked at each other anxiously as people began to shuffle out of the Mess Hall. This was it. They were almost there. Nami leaned in to whisper to the two boys:

"Okay, you guys. This is it. Now we have to remember why we came here. And that was to get the antidote," She said antidote as quietly as she could. Sanji and Usopp nodded, "We need to keep up our appearances at all cost, or else this whole mission will be a complete waste of time. Got it?" The two nodded again.

"We probably won't be able to really meet up again until after we dock…" Sanji mumbled, "Where should we meet up Akemi-san?"

Nami thought hard for a moment, "Umm… The less time we waste, the better, so…"

"How about right at the docks themselves?" Usopp asked, "It'll probably be kinda hectic with people unloading equipment and stuff, but that could give us a chance to talk without being heard."

"Good idea," Nami nodded, "Right at the docks then."

The three split off after that, going their separate ways to get ready with the other Marines in their units. Sanji spent his time nervously dodging questions from others about why he looked like something the cat dragged in, chewed up, and spit out.

"_Zoro, you moss-headed ass…" _He thought angrily amidst all the hustle and bustle, "_You owe me ten packs of cigarettes after this is all over…"_

…...

Chopper bit his lip hard again after Robin told him what she'd found. This was bad… Really bad… Based on what she told him, Zoro's vital organs could give out at any second; even before his time was supposed to be up. That information coupled with what he had just learned from studying the man's blood…

"Oh no…" He muttered hoarsely. Tears prickled up in his throat, "Oh no, no, no… What are we going to do, Robin?" His voice hitched.

"What do you mean, Doctor-san?" She gave him an apprehensive glance.

"I mean what are we going to do about Zoro? A-After studying his blood sample, I found out something… Something terrible…" The reindeer looked at Robin desperately as tears finally began to show the choke in his voice:

"My first diagnosis was somehow wrong! Zoro only has one day left!"

**Author's Note:**

…**.**

…**.**

…**.**

**It has been… Officially… Three months… Since I last updated this story… Wow. Do I feel like the biggest jerk ever. -.-' But-! **

**I LIIIIIIVE! Yosh! It is true! After months of what some of you must've assumed was FanFiction death, I've come back to life with more energy than ever! Whew! **

**I can safely say that I have had the absolute worst Writer's Block in the history of Writer's Block… I know I say that like every time I update (XP), but this time was definitely the worst. (I mean, come on, I didn't update for three months!) I spent many a night awake, going: "HOW DO I DO IT?" **

**Fortunately, somehow, I forced myself to get into the One Piece writing mood by reading old reviews for this story. (They always make me happy ^^) And here we are! It isn't the longest thing I've ever written, but hey! It's a chapter!**

_His nightmares were few and far between, and they usually held some kind of deeper meaning._

**Sanji seems, to me at least, the kind of guy who'd have very few nightmares; those that he did have being the worst things ever. (Or maybe it's just some sick twisted urge I have to torture the poor fellow…) **

_The cook's eyes were both incredibly sunk in and bloodshot, and his face was lined with a fine layer of sweat. And Nami and Usopp both noticed how his hands seemed to shake on the table._

**I actually did my research for this! I went online and looked up a whole bunch of different articles on cigarette withdrawals and what kind of symptoms there were. I'm not a smoker myself, so I wouldn't know anything about it… And I'm not sure if four days is enough time for a withdrawal to be happening, but I figure that Sanji's been smoking since he was twelve, so he's probably pretty addicted to it. **

"_I tried to quit smoking."_

**Don't you worry, people! I have a whole segment planned out for the end where Sanji explains this! :D **

_Chopper wished there was some way he could actually alleviate his friend's terrible coughing, but there really was nothing he could do. _

**I did my research on this too! I searched online for different treatments for coughing, but none of them were an immediate fix. (They were all things like drinking hot tea or taking a spoon full of honey, etc. None were things that Chopper could've done then and there for Zoro) So, meh! **

"_Dunno why I'm spilling my guts out like this though. Not like I'm telling you anything you don't already know." _

**As you all probably know, I simply adore the brotherly relationship between Zoro and Luffy! ^0^ It seems to me that if Zoro were to really vent or spill his guts out to anybody, it'd be Luffy.**

_A small tan-colored ear disappeared from the Merry's deck in a dance of flowers._

**Robin knows everything. This is why. **

_They could only begin to comprehend what was happening as the hands struck down hard on their necks and sent them all to the ground, unconscious_

**Robin is also very practical. Pressure points. Gets 'em every time. **

"_My first diagnosis was somehow wrong! Zoro only has one day left!"_

**Aha! Bet ya didn't see that one coming! **

**The next chapter is probably going to be a lengthy one, since it'll be the actual invasion of Red Fetter. And lemme tell ya, there are a lot of surprises waiting for the StrawHats in my twisted little mind! :D So keep reading and reviewing! You know I love to hear your thoughts! **

**Oh! One more thing! Just as a little side note! **

**This is a little bit odd for me to be asking you guys, but I'm really anxious to hear what you'd all think…**

**Would any one of you be interested in making a 'fan-cover' for this story? I know it's kind of a random request, and pretty weird, but I'd really like to see what my readers would come up with in terms of art! **

**So, I suppose I'm actually asking for fanart. (Which is pretty sad, I've got to admit.) But it's been on my mind for a while now! I contemplated drawing something myself, but I thought it'd be more fun to see if any of you would be willing to do it. ^^ **

**It's not something you HAVE to do. By all means, totally blow me off and go: "Dang, she crazy!" I know that you're busy people that have actual lives to attend to, but I'm just curious! **

**I would love to hear back from any of you on this! :] Thanks! **

**Take care, y'all! **


	12. Red Fetter

**Reader Reviews - Chapter 11/Recent **

**TealEyedBeing:** _Aw, sorry! But I'm really glad that you liked the story enough to be sad about the lack of new chapters! Gah, I love writing for Luffy and Zoro! Especially in these kinds of extreme situations. I think their personalities really shine through in tough times. Happy that you like the way I portray them here though! That means a lot! ^^ Hope you like this chapter and continue reading! _

**Seriously (ann.):**_ … I know. -.-' I'm SORRY. It was a terrible cliffy, and if I ended the story there I'd be the biggest jerk in all of jerkdom. But! I didn't! So I hope you can forgive me. :P _

**NothingIWon'tGive:** _(Heeey, nice username! I'm a big Vic Mignogna fan myself~ 3) Oh goodness. I think that's the most serious threat I've ever gotten from one of my stories. Haha, but I'm glad you like it! Just don't have withdrawals, then I feel like a bad person! D: Hope you continue to enjoy it! Thanks! _

**Falcon Dragina:** _I am continuing! I promise! I know, it was super mean to stop at such a cliffy and I apologize! Hope you like this chapter!_

**Merucha:** _Hahaha, actually that's what I thought when I first came up with the idea of the title. XP I used to be a HUUGE Linkin Park fan, so that's probably where part of the inspiration came from!_

**Yuu13: **_Bahaha, I know. I tend to love writing cliffies. :P Though I never intended for you to wait a year for it to end…. For that I apologize. -.-' Thank you for reviewing a few times! I really like it when readers take the time to do that. :) I'm glad you like the story and hope I can be more consistent with these updates. : /_

**Lenighma: **_Wow. First of all, thank you for reviewing so much! Like I said in the last response, I really appreciate it when my readers take the time to review each chapter because I know it's kind of a pain. So thank you! Jeez! Three years, huh? That's rough! Well, I wish the best of luck to you! I hope you can still revive your fic! Thanks so much again for all the wonderful comments! _

**BlackxValentine: **_Thanks for the multiple reviews! :D Really glad you like the story! Yeah, Zoro's got a tough time ahead of him… Let's just hope he can stay strong! Thanks again! _

**cy-grl:**_Thank you very much! Hope you like this installment! :] _

**Merucha: **_Oh my gosh, thank you! That's such an awesome compliment for me! It really makes me happy that you liked the story enough to actually start an account! And YES, this fic is NOT DEAD. I will continue it to the very end, no matter the roadblocks! Thank you again! Hope you'll continue to like this story! _

** (ann.): **_Yeah….. So incredibly sorry about not updating like a reasonable person. -.-' I feel pretty darn bad… Anyway! Yeah, I'm really mean to poor Zoro. XP Aah, he's kind of a 'tough guy'. He's trying to hide as much pain as he can from his Nakama. Zoro? Die? Well, I don't know… The poison's pretty bad. You'll just have to keep reading! :D Thanks again for the review~! _

**Zephyr (ann.): **_Well thank you for the detailed review! I love those. :D Thank you very much for the compliments! Yes, there truly is never enough Zoro/Luffy friendship moments… Not even as much as I try to include them! XP There should be plenty more coming up though, so I hope you'll keep reading! That's okay; you don't have to review for each chapter. I know how that is. XP Leaving nice reviews like this is just as good I think! Haha, hooray! I think you're the only reviewer who has mentioned the Kite Runner reference I used. :] As well as the only one so far who mentioned the Thriller Bark-ish foreshadowing in Luffy's words. Kudos! Yup, Luffy finding out about the time limit on Zoro's life is gonna be intense. No telling when it will be though! ;) Thank you again for the lengthy review~!_

**AvinaCandela:**_Thank you for the understanding! XP Aah, a month or two isn't that bad! Now EIGHT months… Eeep. Thanks for the review! Hope you like this chapter! :] _

**roronoa94:**_ Thank you so much! It really excites me when readers say that they made accounts on the site just so they could read my work! ^0^ And thanks as well for saying that you think this could actually happen in the anime/manga; that's always important! Well, poor Zoro's going through a rough time. I guess we'll just see what happens! Hope you enjoy this chapter! _

**Sarill:**_ Aww, thank you so much! That's a really great compliment! :] I'm glad the characters seem in character to you! Really hope you continue to read and enjoy this story, despite my horrible tardiness with the update! _

**ZeldaAddict42:**_Zelda-chan~! (I think I might just call you that from now on in these Reader Reviews; I do it with all my very favorites ;) ) Haha, that's okay; I constantly get distracted after reading chapters and forget to review. XP Baha, I make Zoro seem like he's going to die to torture my dear readers, dontcha know? :D While Zoro may be going through a tough time, Sanji's having some issues as well! Glad you addressed those! ;) Haha, that's true, isn't it? I've never seen any low-ranked Marines smoke… Though I figure if you're as scary as some of the higher ups are, they would let you do whatever the heck you wanted. XP And yes, Luffy has a peculiar talent for knowing just what to say when the time is right! As for Robin and Chopper telling Zoro…. Read on, my friend! :D (I'm pretty sure that's my favorite smiley) Thanks, as always, for your lovely reviews! I do enjoy reading them every time! Hope you like this chapter as well! _

**kallakkala:**_ Ah, I know what you mean about taking breaks from FF. As you can see, sometimes I'm gone for a LONG time. XP Anyway, thanks for the review! I'm glad you like the story! And I do hope I was able to update this while you were still alive! XD _

**Sora-chan: **_Congrats, Sora-chan! Only very, very special reviewers get to have nicknames on my Reader Reviews! :D Yup. Poor Sanji. I could never pass up an opportunity to torture him as well as the marimo! :P Yus! Things are about to get tense at this Marine Base! And Zoro, of course, is progressing pretty fast. But he's trying to hide as much pain as he can from his crewmates, you see. He's Zoro! Yeah, Robin is a very good watch guard! Haha, probably the best on the ship, actually. XP As for her info on the poison, you're just gonna have to reeeeeead~! :D Haha, yes, I imagine Sanji would be trying his hardest to stay relatively cheery during this horrible time! And that's perfectly okay; cheese and humor are both good! Whew! Well, in that case, I'm not quite dead to you yet. That's a relief! I'm sorry for the uber lateness! Thanks as always, Sora-chan; I love reading your reivews! :D :D _

**Yahoo (ann.):**_Haha, first of all, I like the name. XD Thanks so much! Oh, It's totally fine if you can't draw! I will take a devoted fan over artwork any day! :3 Thanks for that! So SO sorry this is so dreadfully late. : / Aww, thanks! Hugs! Hope you like this one! _

**kakashifan7:** _(Diggin' the username first of all! ;D ) Thank you! :] I'm glad you find it helpful! I'm always afraid of completely confusing my readers. Plus, sometimes there are just funny little quips I have to add. :P Thanks again! Hope you keep reading! _

**zoroluver003:** _Oh noes! Don't skip dinner! O.O Food is important! Nevertheless, your review made me very happy! :) I was actually having kind of a bad day when I received it in my email, and it made me feel all warm and fuzzy inside! So thank you! :3 I take it as a huge compliment when readers say that my stories could happen in the actual One Piece story! Hope you keep enjoying this story! _

**callosum:** _Aww, that's alright! You have no idea how often I skip reviews on chapters. Bahaha, that's okay too! Flail away! I'm always happy if my stories can inspire flailing. XP Yesss… Commander Gorgon means business! I guess we'll just see how he plays out in the story! Yeah, the Luffy part was difficult for me simply because I knew what I wanted Luffy to know, but I was concerned about how much he was talking to Zoro about it. But thanks! Glad you thought it was good overall! Momentum is good! Hope you enjoy this chapter and the upcoming ones! I hope to be more consistent in the future! _

**ArabianNinja:**___Oh my goodness, if you actually were able to draw something, that would be absolutely SWEET. No pressure though! If you have the time! If not, that's completely fine. ^^ I really appreciate the thought though! Yeah, the last sentence was a little bit of a slap in the face for Chopper. XP Poor thing. I'm so mean to the entire crew! I guess we'll see if Zoro makes it or not, huh? I really hope you like this chapter! Thanks for the review, and the willingness to draw a picture for this story! XP _

**Red Voident Dragon:**_… Did you change your username? O.o Maybe I'm crazy… Anyway! I'm glad I surprised you! Aww, thank you! That's really awesome! Don't feel pressured to hurry and draw something though! I really appreciate your saying you'd give it a shot though! :3 Really hope you continue to like this story! _

**cb O chan:**___Time is ticking away, it's true! Well thank you! :D I'm glad you appreciate the research! I didn't want to just start making things up. XP Thank you very much for the review! Hope you like this chapter! _

**-RoronoaToki-:** _Haha, I think you're the first reader to call the cliffy 'awesome'. Kudos! XD I hope the invasion is written up to snuff for ya! Thanks! I always love writing for scenes with Luffy and Zoro. Those two are just such besties~! Really? That's amazing! Thanks so much! Don't feel pressured to have the picture done super fast. (I know how that goes!) I'm just happy you're making the effort. :] Thanks again! _

**Iryann:** _Y'know, I re-read your fic 'Wind With Ice' (That's what it's called, right? For some reason, its name always eludes me! ) for like the third time a while ago while on a horrible Writer's Block for this story. I really love it! 3 Anyway! I digress! Ahh, I love cliffhangers far too much, I'm afraid. XP Thank you so much for the compliment! Keeping the crew in character in really important for me, so I'm always happy when readers say I'm doing a good job at it. Hope you enjoy this chapter~! _

**KiaCoral:**_ I'm sorry! I've been absolutely horrendous about updating! T.T I feel really bad…But I'm glad you like this story enough to be impatient for the updates! Hope this chapter will be up to your expectations! Thanks for the review! _

**PaperBagGhost:**_ Haha, hooray~! I'm not the only one who unhealthily like cliffies it seems. XP Suspense is indeed good. I'm glad you keep enjoying it more and more! That's exciting for me! :] WOOHOO! A Franky thumbs up~! That's awesome! :D :D Hope this chapter keeps you liking the story! _

**Duchess92:**_ I am indeed alive! Even after this long nine months… It's been a tribulation for sure. Hahaha! "Spidey-senses"? That's awesome. I'll be honest with you; I've never thought about Sanji's nightmares like that. XD But I'm glad you think they serve a purpose! I didn't want it to just be Sanji fan service angst. (Which it is to an extent, really) Thank you for patiently waiting! Hope this chapter keeps you wanting more! :] _

**Hiding In My Writing:** _(Ooh, I like the username! Nifty! :D ) Haha, that's really how cliffhangers work, right? You love 'em but you hate 'em at the same time! Yikes… If Zoro's time limit was set in with our own time in the real world, he'd be long dead and Luffy would have hunted me down… *shivers* Scary… O.O Anyway, thanks for the review! Hope you like this chapter! _

**Velkyn Karma:**___I always smile when I see that you've reviewed for the chapter. I love your long reviews. :] Glad you liked Sanji's thoughts! He, Zoro, and Luffy are probably my favorite to write for in One Piece. I'm sorry about your mom; that must have been very difficult for both of you. But I am glad that you can sympathize with Sanji though; that kind of relieves me in a way. Yes, Gorgon is kind of a suspicious man that way. We'll just see what happens~! Yup. The cards just keep on getting stacking against our poor Zoro. The little Marine group has quite a task ahead of them! Thanks! Glad you thought so. Yeah, I've gotta admit, I was super nervous about that part. There were a bunch of things that I wanted to add in to just show how wounded Zoro really is, but I was worried when I finished because Luffy really doesn't usually talk that much… : / Glad you still thought the interactions were in character though! Thank you for the well-wishing! I do hope that the horrible Block will leave me alone for at least a little while. It's quite awful… Hope you like this chapter too! I appreciate your lovely long reviews! :D _

**AllBlueChaser:**_Haha, I really don't blame you. It's been a long time! Even longer now! You'll probably need to go back and reread, to be honest. XP Thank you though! Sanji's having some tough times, the poor boy. I really enjoy causing him pain WAY too much. Hope you like this chapter too! _

**lochrann:**_ I say this a lot, but I really love cliffies. A lot. :D And SO SO sorry for the horrendous late update. I really need to be better about that. Bahaha! Gorgonzola? That's awesome! XD Y'know, I think you might have given me an idea for later on in the story…. *thinking* Anyway, yeah, he's pretty scruffy and scary and all that. :P That's true! Zoro has lost a LOT of blood on several occasions… Let's just hope he survives this, eh? Thank you for the review! _

**Taryn Steambattle:** _Thank you for the compliment! :) Hahaha! I think you're the first reviewer to actually tell me that I'm mean to Zoro! XD It's true though; I can't deny that at all. Sanji WOULD be quite angry if his brother died. ;) Thanks for the compliment about the withdrawal! I was nervous about making sure that it came on as realistic! Haha, yeah, I think Sanji is picking up a few personality quirks from Nami! There's no shame in being a Chopper fan girl! I am too! XD Whenever I write for him I just feel all warm and fuzzy. Thanks! I've been concerned with the length of Luffy's little 'speech', but I'm glad you found that it worked out! You're right; I'm pretty sure the True History is one of the only things Robin DOESN'T know about. XP Hoo boy, if you think the Marines are in trouble NOW…. :D Thanks for the nice review! Hope you like this chapter! _

**Pom Rania:**_ Yeah, Zoro's pretty frustrated with himself right now too. :P Aw, thanks~! That's totally okay! I'm sure you don't fail at drawing, first of all, and if you even do any quick doodles send me a quick message. I'd love to see it if you ever got around to it! That said, no pressure to draw one. No worries. :] Oh no! Coughing up blood is never good! Well, I'm glad it's not some serious horrible thing… Anyway, thank you for the review! Hope you enjoy this chapter! _

**borednerdsunited: **_Yosh! :D The next few chapters are going to be pretty action-packed, so let's hope the StrawHats can keep their strength up! Haha, that's totally fine! XP They're OC Marines, plus they don't get a whole lot of screen time, so that's totally understandable. Hooray! Glad you liked it. I do enjoy writing for a serious/angtsy Luffy every now and again. ;) I'm pretty sure Robin IS psychic in some ways! She always seems to know things that other people don't! Uwa! I know! Zoro? Die? I am just that cruel to the crew and my readers. XP But I'm glad you liked it! Hope you continue to! Thanks for leaving constant long reviews! I appreciate it! _

**-Arashi-Storm-Guardian-:** _Yus… Time IS ticking away for the crew… I'm glad you're getting excited! That's definitely the response I'm going for in the next few chapters especially! My goal is to keep it building up! Glad you like the Nakamaship as well! It's definitely underrated I think! We could always use more! :D Thank you for the review~! Hope you like this chapter! (Sorry it's so very late… -.-') _

**AUTHOR'S ADVICE! **

**Hey all! **

**So, due to the horrendously late posting of this chapter of From the Inside, I would highly recommend that you guys go back and reread, just to get the story back in your heads again. You certainly don't have to, but as the author I feel like it's been such a long time since I've updated that more than a few of you will be a little fuzzy as to what's going on. Maybe you'll remember as you read, I dunno! It's just a suggestion. :] **

**Also, on a separate note, I'd like to thank each and every one of you for being patient with me and for giving me SO many wonderful reviews. For this chapter's Reader Review section alone, I typed up five pages. WOW. That's the largest amount I've ever written for that section for any story. So thank you guys so, so much. You readers are truly what makes writing this story special for me. I really appreciate your input. :D **

**On that note, I hope you enjoy this (horribly) late installment~!**

…...

"_Holy crap, it's huge!"_

Usopp stood with his mouth slightly agape, trying to remain as cool as possible. He swallowed, _"So that's… Red Fetter."_

The giant base loomed over Flagship #12 as it slowly sailed into the harbor. What looked like hundreds of smaller buildings surrounded one very large building in the center. 'MARINE' was plastered on the huge white building, boldly proclaiming itself to the world.

There were tons of other ships, Usopp noticed, stationed at this harbor. It even seemed like they completely encircled the manmade island. And though he knew this was all part of the StrawHats' plan, he couldn't help but feel frightened by coming straight into the front of the base. The infamous base, he reminded himself, where even some of Gold Roger's men were executed.

"Ensign Yamaguchi!"

The rough voice from behind startled Usopp. He quickly turned around to see a corporal staring at him with a hard gaze. Corporal… Oh crap, what was his name?

"Y-Yes, sir!" The sniper saluted, trying to act as confident as he could. Unfortunately, he couldn't hide all of the stuttering.

"Step lively, Ensign," The corporal stated, "I know that we've come back again after a month, but you shouldn't be so on edge."

"M-My apologies, sir! I suppose I'm just a little excited to be back!"

The corporal smiled in a soft friendly way that caught Usopp off guard, "I know, Ensign. You have a wife here, right? I'm sure she's ecstatic that you're coming home again."

For a split second, Usopp's face froze, "…_Wife? Shit! I-I have a WIFE?" _The sniper frantically thought back to when he was looking over Kappei's file. He thought he memorized everything important! His rank, age, unit, fighting capabilities, years in the service… "_Holy crap…" _The man was hit with an epiphany, _"I FORGOT TO LOOK AT HIS BACKGROUND!" _Usopp could just picture Sanji kicking him into tomorrow. How in the hell could he forget to look at something so obvious! Of course they would have family back at the base! Didn't Nami say they lived there?

"_Quick! Hurry you idiot, just roll with it! Before he gets suspicious!" _Usopp yelled at himself mentally. He made the best attempt at a smile as he could, "O-Oh, yes sir. I hope so. I sure can't wait to see her again. _Wow, Usopp, way to make it sound as cheesy as possible." _

The corporal clapped Usopp on the back, "As you were, Ensign. We're almost there now."

"Yes sir," Usopp saluted as the man walked away. He sighed in relief when the higher officer was out of sight, "That was close…" He muttered to himself. Suddenly startled by the yells of other soldiers, Usopp remembered to go back to his job of manning the starboard sails. He hoisted his leg up to the railing where he began to grip the ropes. He was thankful that ship procedures were basically the same here as they were on the Merry…

Usopp looked over at Red Fetter, a determined frown set on his face. A vision of the green-haired swordsman popped into his head, "_Zoro…" _He thought, "_We're almost there. Don't you worry, we'll get that antidote for you. Then you'll be all better again."_

…...

Chopper's hooves shook. How could he have made such an error in the diagnosis? He thought he did everything perfectly! He never messed up… Not like this.

Robin's brow furrowed as a drop of sweat began to work its way down her face. This was horrible news… She would never have expected the young doctor to be wrong in his diagnosis of their swordsman. He always seemed to be so thorough with his work.

"… It may not be your fault, Doctor-san," the archeologist said after a moment of thought. Chopper looked up at her confusedly. The hopeless look on his face was enough to even make Robin's heart sink, "It may very well have something to do with the poison itself. How it was designed, I mean. After all, Swordsman-san didn't seem _too _ill of health when you examined him a few days ago, correct?"

"No!" Chopper quickly said defensively. He backed off a little, looking down at the floor, "Well… He was still sick because of the poison…" The defensive look came back as his gaze moved back up to Robin, "B-But it wasn't anything that would have cut his time down so severely!"

"Exactly," Robin nodded, "I'm sure that your examination was flawless as usual, so really, there is no other explanation for how Zoro's condition could have gotten so bad so fast. It must have something to do with the structure of the poison."

"Y-You think so…?"

"Of course."

Chopper's body shuddered with a sigh as he settled onto his stool. It literally looked like he had the weight of the world on his shoulders. He rubbed his face with his hooves, bringing out dark circles under his eyes. His voice came out in barely a whisper:

"… I don't know what to do, Robin…"

"We'll find a way to fix things, Doctor-san," The woman reassured him gently. She felt a great amount of sympathy for the young reindeer, "We've reached the base, so now all we have to do is lay low and wait for Navigator-san and the others to find the antidote and make it back to us. I bet it won't even take them a day."

"… Really? Well, I-" Chopper suddenly looked startled, "Wait, Robin, where are we going to be hiding? It's going to be really hard to hide a big ship like this!"

"Ah, that's right. You weren't there when we examined the map Navigator-san procured… Well, conveniently for us, Red Fetter is surrounded on almost all sides with tall jagged rocks; much like cliff faces, actually. This is said to be a 'man-made island', though in all reality, it was likely built on top of a platform of rock protruding from the sea. What I'm getting at is-"

"Oh! We can hide out by those rocks!" The little reindeer exclaimed in a sudden revelation.

"Exactly," Robin smiled at his enthusiasm.

…...

Zoro gripped his swords instinctively as the Merry grew closer and closer to the base. His eyes narrowed on the target. Part of him groaned mentally when seeing how huge the place really was. But another part of him- the stronger one -didn't give a damn about the size. It just wanted the poison to be safely out of his body so that he could get on with his freakin' life.

Luffy stood by his First Mate loyally, staring up at the base with a hard expression on his face. Normally he'd be jumping up and down, yelling about how cool this place looked and how excited he was to go in, but this situation warranted slightly different feelings. It definitely excited him to see a new place that he'd never been to before, but the young Captain had heavier things weighing down his mind; namely his swordsman. He didn't know a lot of things about the whole ordeal, but he knew that Zoro was in trouble and that he needed his Captain and crew to help him. And that was all Luffy _needed_ to know.

"Excited, Zoro?" Luffy asked the man without looking at him. A large somehow ferocious smile took up his face; one he always wore before an adventure started.

Though this was a serious matter, the rubber boy couldn't deny the amount of energy he felt at the idea of breaking into a huge renowned Marine Base responsible for killing some of the most famous pirates around to find a cure that they weren't even sure was there. It seemed like an impossible mission. Luffy liked that.

"Who do you think you're talking to, Captain?" Zoro smirked at Luffy before turning his gaze back to Red Fetter.

Luffy laughed, "Guess that was a pretty dumb question!"

Suddenly, the boy seemed to notice how Zoro's left hand started tapping its fingers on the railing. The other hand was wrapped around his white sword. His favorite. Zoro never told Luffy much about himself besides the basics, but that white sword seemed to mean something very special to him. He certainly favored it over his others. Luffy wasn't about to pry, though. That was Zoro's business.

Zoro was anxious, Luffy thought. Well of course he was anxious, they were almost to the place that held his cure. And if Luffy knew Zoro half as well as he thought he did, he knew that the man hated only being able to work at partial capacity. Having to do so for even this long must have been driving him crazy.

The raven-haired boy planted a hand on top of his straw hat firmly, glaring at the opponent before him. The same wild smile took up his face again, "Hey, Zoro."

"Hm?"

"How about you and me make a deal?"

"… A deal?"

"Yup!" His smile widened impossibly, "If we can find that cure thingy for you in a day, then you'll go with me into the next town!"

Zoro rolled his eyes. Now Luffy was using his First Mate's condition as leverage. The Captain persisted:

"Aw, come on! Usopp's been complaining a lot lately about going into towns with me and you never want to come when I ask you!"

"Complaining?" Zoro cocked an eyebrow up.

"I dunno. Something about his neck hurting or something…" He was oblivious.

Zoro couldn't' help himself. He chuckled. Whenever Luffy 'brought' someone into a new town to explore with him, it usually involved landing face-first into some hard substance like concrete or cobblestone. Luffy looked confused at the man's laughter. Zoro sighed in defeat, though a smile was on his face.

"Well… Why the hell not? Sure, Luffy. Sounds like a deal."

Luffy's face brightened, "Really? Woohoo! This is gonna be awesome!" He threw his hands in the air victoriously.

Zoro shook his head, "Jeez…"

…...

"_This place is really bustling… It's like a city in and of itself," _Nami mused as Flagship #12 sailed into port, "_It's definitely big enough to be…" _

She didn't know what freaked her out more; the mass amount of Marines that littered every area she could see or the fact that she and two other crewmates had successfully made it to the base without a hitch. Honestly, she didn't expect their plan to be going so well. Granted, Nami was relieved that no one seemed to have seen through the ruse yet, but it put her on edge at the same time.

"_The farther we go into this base, the more at risk we become," _She thought, _"I can only hope that Sanji-kun and Usopp are able to keep up appearances long enough to find that cure. Me too, of course," _She swallowed, _"And with any luck, the rest of the crew will be waiting nearby for us in case we need to make a speedy escape. We probably will…" _

Nami was called away to help lower the anchor with other members of the Flagship's crew once the ship had pulled safely into the docks, a prospect that she wasn't exactly excited about. As she and a small group of others lifted the heavy object, a dull and ironic thought occurred to her. Usually _she _was the one yelling at Zoro to weigh anchor. The swordsman did it all by himself too, no help required. Nami quickly dismissed the thought from her mind, however, as it brought a strange bad taste to her mouth.

As soon as the anchor hit the water, a flurry of movement overtook the ship. Nami (who was trying not to show how much she was panting and sweating from lifting the anchor) stood for a moment, astounded at how quick these Marines were to get down to business. For some reason it made her nervous. Before she could attempt to move around and figure out what was going on, an officer approached her.

"Ensign Okamura?"

"Yes, sir!" She saluted; a motion that was becoming rather automatic.

"Don't forget your reassignment orders," He continued, "You are to report to the Training Grounds today. Another officer will be there to receive you."

"Of course, sir," Nami nodded, "_Crap, where is this Training Grounds place? Does this mean I'm going to be separated from the others?" _

The officer chuckled, "Now, this 'officer' is a little wet behind the ears. He's a corporal, from Fifteenth Division, and he probably doesn't know how to handle such a large amount of recruits very well. I'm counting on you to show him what Twelfth Division is made of."

"Yes, sir!" She saluted again and smiled to the best of her ability, "You don't need to worry about a thing!"

"That's what I like to hear," He quickly nudged her on the shoulder, "Now hurry and start unloading the new equipment!"

"Sir!" Nami turned around and started to walk away, glancing over her shoulder to see the officer going in the opposite direction. She bit her lip, _"I have to find Usopp and Sanji-kun." _

…...

"Which one is that, Ensign?"

"Provisions, sir."

"Right. Set it over there by that group to the left."

"Sir."

Sanji set the box down on top of a few others, brushing his hands together to get rid of excess dust. He glanced around, trying to pick out a familiar face amongst all the blue and white that was passing by. Now that they were actually at the base, the buddy system seemed as important as ever.

"Ah, Ensign Hiroaki! Could I see you for a moment, please?" A hand grabbed Sanji's arm and yanked him backwards, startling Sanji into almost losing his footing. He muffled a surprised grunt and twisted his neck around to see who was dragging him down the docks. Once he stopped moving, he turned around fully.

"Fellow Ensign Yamaguchi, what a surprise," His tone held no friendliness, "Don't you think there was a better way of getting my attention?" He hissed, "You nearly gave me a heart attack."

"Sorry," Usopp said sincerely, "I just thought the most direct approach might be best. Pretend like we're taking inventory of these boxes," He and Sanji turned around to face the group of boxes. His voice lowered, "We won't look too suspicious this way. Have you seen Akemi-san?"

"No," Sanji followed suit, "I've been looking for you guys, but its been a little difficult because of all this stuff we've had to bring out of the ship. I haven't had much of a moment to just look around."

"Yeah, same here," Usopp said, "I'm in the Supply Unit too, so everyone keeps coming up and asking me questions that I only know half-answers to," His voice faltered in defeat, "I didn't really think about that part…"

Sanji chuckled, "Well, you're obviously doing an okay job if you haven't been caught yet," He frowned again, "But something else has been bothering me. Did you-?"

"Do you require help with inventory, sirs?" Sanji and Usopp turned around, "Ensign Akemi Okamura reporting."

Sanji bit back a smile, "Your help would be greatly appreciated, Akemi-san."

"Good," Nami deflated with a sigh, walking up in between Sanji and Usopp, "I finally found you guys. If I have to carry another box of rifles, my arms are going to fall off."

Usopp smiled, "I know what you mean."

"… Back to what I was saying earlier," Sanji said, "Akemi-san, Yamaguchi-san, did you both get reassignment orders?"

Nami looked surprised, "How did you know that?"

"Yeah, I only thought the lieutenant who told me knew about mine," said Usopp.

Sanji chewed on his lip. God, he wanted a cigarette, "Because I got 'reassigned' too."

"That's a convenient coincidence then, isn't it?" Usopp's face brightened up.

"No, it's not," Nami said sourly, "How do we know we all got reassigned to the same place, idiot?"

"Oh, that's right…" Usopp's face fell, "Well, I'm supposed to go to the Market District in the Housing Complex. Something about helping deliver new shipments of goods."

"I got assigned to the Training Grounds," Nami said.

"I'm supposed to report to the R&D Department," said Sanji with some anxiousness.

"Wait, R&D Department?" That caught Nami's ear, "They have a place specifically for Research and Development here?"

"Yeah, it doubles as the Storage Grounds," nodded Sanji, "But that's not what interests me about it. What interests me is that I'm supposed to deliver new shipments of equipment to the scientists there."

"And since it's the science department…"

It dawned on Usopp, "It would be the perfect place to find the cure!" He had to keep his voice from getting loud.

"… But it also means that Hiroaki-kun will be on his own…" Nami muttered.

"Exactly," Sanji sighed, "But we don't have any other choice. If you two were to follow me, it would look suspicious. We can't afford to be caught now. We're too close."

"I don't like it, but you're right," Nami shook her head.

"But… We can't just let Hiroaki-kun go there by himself!" He turned to Sanji, "If you're going to be snooping around there looking for the cure, you're already going to look suspicious. What if you're caught?"

Sanji shrugged, "Let's just hope I can be sneakier than Luffy."

"… We need to come up w-" Nami started before a loud voice interrupted her.

"The 6 o' clock Tram departure is scheduled to leave in ten minutes!" The three looked around them to see that there were various den-den mushi devices acting as speakers scattered throughout the area, "Again, the 6 o'clock Tram is scheduled to leave the Docks in ten minutes! All units please respond accordingly!"

"The Tram?" Usopp questioned.

Nami eyed groups of recruits that all looked like they were headed in the same direction, "If I remember correctly from the map we had on the Merry, there's one central transportation system on this island that they use to reach different sections of the base faster. I bet that's this Tram that we're hearing about."

"Then I suppose that's where all those Marines are going," Sanji commented, "And where we probably need to go too."

"That sounds like the best idea," Nami nodded.

Usopp gulped, "S-So… After we get on this Tram thing, we're all gonna be separated?"

"That's the way it looks right now…" Nami said with a frown. She turned back to the two of them, "But be very careful you guys. We probably won't be able to talk on the Tram because of all the people that are going to be there. If all goes according to plan, the Going Merry should be moored to the east of the docks behind a rocky outcropping by tonight. If something goes horribly wrong and you have no other options, make for the Merry. I know it's not a good idea to just expose ourselves, but if we all get captured then we're screwed anyway. Plan to meet at the Merry tonight regardless. Later is probably better. The sun's going to set here soon though, so we don't have a whole lot of time. Got it?"

Sanji and Usopp nodded. Sanji frowned in concern, "You be careful too, Akemi-san. Don't put yourself at an unnecessary risk."

Nami gave him a thumbs up, "Ah, I'll be fine! The Marines can't outsmart me."

"More like can't out-swindle you," Usopp said.

"We've been through this. I'm going to hell in a hand basket, I know."

"… A normal person wouldn't be smiling as they say that."

…...

"Why do we have to stay inside? This is boring!"

"So we can save our strength for the next battle or whatever. Do you ever listen when other people talk?"

"Yeah I do!"

"Okay, then what did she say?"

"She said we were going to have a barbecue or something, right?"

"… How the hell did you arrive at that?"

"Well, she said it!"

"No she didn't! She said that we needed to come and stay in the men's cabin to get ready for the fight that's coming up. How did you think of a barbecue?"

"She said something about getting fired up, and fired up means there's a fire which means there's meat cooking!"

"You really are an idiot! She was talking about getting 'fired up' for the battle with the Marines, not starting barbecue! Besides, why in the hell would we have a barbecue by a Marine base?"

"Because barbecues are fun! Duh! Jeez Zoro, you can be kinda dumb sometimes… Ow! What was that for?"

"I may not be able to stop your stupidity, but I sure as hell can hit you for it."

Chopper ran into the men's cabin, "You guys! Why are you being so loud?" He spoke in a frenzied whisper.

"Zoro hit me!" Luffy complained, rubbing his head.

"Oh, don't be such a baby," Zoro rolled his eyes.

"We put you in here so you wouldn't cause a big commotion!" said Chopper, "So that means keep your voices down too. You two are so loud we can hear you clearly up on deck."

"Wait, you put us down here to be _quiet_?" Zoro asked.

"Yes, and lie low. You two are walking targets out there as we get closer to the base," He sighed, "Also, when Robin said 'fired up', she didn't mean a barbecue, and she didn't mean we were going to fight someone."

"Hm?" Luffy and Zoro answered in unison.

"She was saying that you two get fired up really easily and that you should hide out until it's safe," Chopper thought in the back of his mind that it was like talking to two-year-olds, "I'm going back out to help Robin. Remember! Ssh!" Chopper closed the door behind him.

Zoro and Luffy looked at each other in silence for a moment.

"… My guess was closer."

"Was not."

…...

Chopper shut the door behind him with a sigh before trotting down to Robin on the main deck. She looked up from the map of Red Fetter that she had been studying, "Were you successful?"

"I hope so," He grumbled, "It's like talking to children..."

Robin giggled, "Indeed."

"Do we have our course planned out?" Chopper asked anxiously, standing up on the tips of his hooves to try and see the map.

Robin crouched down to give him a better view, "Yes. We're going to moor the Going Merry behind this outcropping of rocks here," She pointed it out to him on the map, "At nightfall of course. We still have to stay a close distance away for now so as not to be spotted."

"So… Are they gonna have guards posted all around?" Chopper asked.

Robin nodded, "When Navigator-san and I were working out this plan, we were almost one-hundred percent positive that there would be sentries posted around the base with spotlights on the water. We're going to have to be extremely careful."

Chopper swallowed, "Y-Yeah…"

"I'm going to be counting on you to man the rudder and follow my instructions when the time comes, Doctor-san."

"Yeah!" Chopper responded with more conviction this time.

Robin looked out at Red Fetter again, "The sun's beginning to set… We have to be ready as soon as it's dark enough for us to move."

"Right! … Say, uh, Robin?"

"Yes?"

"It's only sunset. We won't be moving until it gets dark, right?"

"Correct."

"So, um… Why lock Luffy and Zoro below deck so soon? I mean we won't-" Chopper paused in the middle of his sentence to consider what he was saying, "… Oh. Never mind. Stupid question."

Robin smiled.

…

"Last call for the 6 o'clock Tram!" The conductor of the vehicle announced over a small den-den mushi.

Sanji shuffled in his seat, glancing around the Tram. If circumstances were less grim, he would have marveled at how spacious it was. Granted, everyone was packed together like sardines, but he assumed that was normal. He looked quickly to Nami and Usopp, who sat in seats in front of him. The moment the three of them made for the Tram, they cut off all contact so as not to draw attention to themselves. Even sitting near each was probably dangerous.

A sharp hissing sound came from the front of the Tram as the conductor started it. Within seconds, the vehicle lurched forward and began to move along the tracks with a low hum. The Marines began to chat amongst themselves. Sanji took this opportunity to look out the window to his left. He gaped at how large the place really was. The Tram's railing was up on higher ground than most of the rest of the base, so he was able to get a more comprehensive view. For some reason the height was threatening.

The cook sighed into his seat as he took his gaze away from the window. The soldier next to him chuckled empathetically, "Rough voyage back, huh bud?"

"Ah, yeah. You know how it is. Sometimes fatigue just catches up to you all at once, know what I mean?" Sanji smiled, stretching for good measure.

The soldier agreed, quickly becoming entangled in another conversation about fatigue with a different Marine. Sanji was glad for that. He didn't want to get too friendly with the Marines here.

"Approaching the Housing Complex," The conductor announced, "Prepare to stop at Station 2 near the Market District."

Sanji looked back out the window. They were passing a huge cement wall down below that seemed to separate the Loading Grounds from the Housing Complex, "_Must be how they section off all the areas…" _He thought, "_I wonder if that means the Tram is the only way to get around the different parts of the base?" _His brow lowered, "_That could be trouble." _

The Tram slowly came to a halt. While Sanji was deep in thought, they had passed into the Housing Complex, and several Marines were already beginning to stand up.

"All Marines bound for the Housing Complex or Market District, please exit the Tram and proceed to the second car to unload necessary equipment."

One by one, Marines filed out of the Tram and walked behind to the second car to unload gear. Sanji's eyes immediately went to Usopp. The young man exited in the middle of the group, almost unrecognizable amid all of the blue and white. Sanji eyed him carefully as he went to the second car. When the supplies were unloaded and the Tram started to move again, Sanji took one last look behind him before closing his eyes.

"_Good luck." _

…

Robin gazed at the outline of Red Fetter. It became clearer as sharper as the sun fell behind the horizon. Slowly, scattered round lights began to appear all over the base. The archeologist's eyes narrowed.

"Doctor-san," She spoke to the reindeer beside her without looking at him, "Are the hostages secure?"

"Yes. Not a thing to worry about."

"In that case, go ahead."

Chopper nodded, "Yeah," He ran up to the Going Merry's kitchen, throwing the door open. Turning into Heavy Point, he manned the rudder with a firm grip, "Just give the order."

Robin looked down at a map of the base she had been holding. A breeze ruffled the page. She clenched the paper tighter, "Hard to starboard. 3 o'clock."

…

The floor of the ship shifted underneath them. Suddenly they were turning sharply. Luffy staggered to the side clumsily, holding onto his hat. He looked up, "What's going on?"

Zoro sat on the floor across from his Captain with his eyes closed. He held his three swords to his chest with a vice grip. As the ship moved, his eyes opened slowly. A fire burned in the man's tired eyes.

"It's begun."

**Author's (Apologetic) Note: **

**Words cannot even BEGIN to describe the amount of shame I feel for leaving this story hanging for so long. Over a YEAR. I'm not going to give excuses, as there are many I could give, and they would span several pages I imagine. I would, however, like to offer my deepest apologies to all of you dear readers who have been waiting so very patiently for me to get off my duff and continue this thing. **

**I'd like to take this time also to say that this fic is indeed NOT dead, nor will it ever be dead. I refuse to completely let this story die. I've invested quite a lot of time and energy in it, and am actually proud of what I've accomplished so far. So, rest assured, I will finish this story! (Who knows how long it will take, but I will)**

**I do aim to ultimately dish out these chapters faster. This one was a nightmare. I spent months trying to make myself write, and this chapter was actually written in the span of this last year. In light of that I'm going to learn from my mistakes and be timelier with my updates. (Though do be somewhat patient my dear readers. I also have 'Cursed', my other big story, to update, and that one's been taking a back seat to this one recently.)**

_The man was hit with an epiphany, __"I FORGOT TO LOOK AT HIS BACKGROUND!"_

**Usopp Fail.**

_It seemed like an impossible mission. Luffy liked that._

**Luffy IS incredibly famous for defying any and all odds that come his way, after all. **

_Sanji shrugged, "Let's just hope I can be sneakier than Luffy."_

**Not a hard thing to accomplish, Sanji dear. **

"_We've been through this. I'm going to hell in a hand basket, I know."_

**In FUNimation's One Piece English Dub (which I can't praise enough; they do a fantastic job), when the crew's at Whiskey Peak, and the only ones who aren't passed out are Nami and Zoro, Nami swindles Zoro into yet another favor by hovering his ever-growing berry debt over him. Zoro says something pretty nasty to her, to which Nami replies, "Oh yes. And I'm sure I'll go straight to hell." I thought it was absolutely hilarious, so I wanted to put in something like it in this story somewhere. :P**

"_I may not be able to stop your stupidity, but I sure as hell can hit you for it."_

**Perhaps the motto of the StrawHat crew… XP **

**Well, I do hope you all enjoy this chapter regardless of the ridiculous amount of time it took me to give to you. It's actually a little longer than my chapters are normally (I figured that I at least owed THAT much to you guys!), and I hope that makes you guys somewhat appeased with my absence! **

**Thanks so much for all of your love for this story! :) You make writing worthwhile! **

**Please review and tell me your thoughts!  
(P.S. Anyone still considering doing fanart? :D )**


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